


loving him was red (and blue)

by 70sBabe



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: F/M, Friends to Lovers, Peter is a dork, Spideychelle, based on a taylor swift album, but a little drama too, but they go together like PB&J, lots of jokes, michelle is a goddess, red deserved a grammy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-14
Updated: 2017-10-11
Packaged: 2018-12-29 17:11:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 22,200
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12089577
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/70sBabe/pseuds/70sBabe
Summary: the story of Peter/MJ, told through the tracks of Taylor Swift's album Red





	1. state of grace

_ now all we know _

_ is don’t let go _

 

“Oh, come on, I know it’s you.” Michelle crossed her arms, tapping her foot on the iron grating of her fire escape. Spider-Man, Queens’ own personal superhero, was crouched on the railing in front of her.

“Ma’am, I don’t know what you’re talking about,” came the steady, practiced answer. MJ sighed, quickening the tapping of her foot.  _ God, he’s annoying _ .

How did Michelle find herself in this situation? Simple. She knew Peter was Spider-Man almost immediately after the web-slinger had started popping up on local news outlets. All you had to do was put two and two together and Michelle was pretty good at math. She never planned on confronting him about it but, after spending more time together and discovering that they might just enjoy each other’s company after all, MJ thought it was time to lay it all out. She lived just two blocks over from Peter and she knew that he would swing by her window on his way home after a long day of crime-fighting, so she decided to put up a sign. “SPIDEY WE NEED TO TALK -MJ” No surprise, he was knocking on her window in no time. 

Michelle rolled her eyes. “Peter, it’s really none of my business if you want to wear a Halloween costume and swing around New York like you’re Tarzan. I just know that it’s you, so we don’t need to continue with this whole ‘secret identity’ thing.”

Spider-Man had jumped down from the railing, now standing in front of her. MJ cocked her head expectantly, waiting for him to pull that dumb mask off.

“You know, I was having a good day,” he was muttering. “I stopped a carjacking, I got a free hot dog from the cart on 21st, and I’m almost done with my History project. I don’t need this.”

“Oh, shut up,” Michelle snorted. “Just take off the mask.” He reached up and pulled it off slowly, revealing Peter Parker’s familiar face. Now, if MJ was being honest with herself, she knew that her rapid heartbeat had nothing to do with the suspense of the situation and everything to do with the boy in front of her. But she prefered to pretend that Peter Parker was nothing more than a classmate and friend, someone who was a puzzle that needed to be solved. So, she shoved those butterflies back into whatever crevice they fluttered up from and focused back on the task at hand.

“Okay,” Peter let out a deep breath. “You caught me. I’m Spider-Man. What are you gonna do with this information?”

“Nothing,” Michelle wrinkled her nose. “Did you think I had some ulterior motive?” Peter nodded. “Parker, I just wanted to know I was right. Which I was.”

“You’re not gonna tell anyone, right?”

“Who would I tell?”

“Okay, fair enough.” Peter fiddled with the mask in his hands.

“So, I guess that’s it,” MJ shrugged. “You can get on with your little extracurricular activity.”

“Yeah,” Peter seemed lost in thought, not making any moves to leave. “Hey, do you wanna do something cool?”

“Um,” Michelle hesitated, not sure if his idea of “cool” would line up with hers.  _ You know what? Why not? _ “Eh, what the hell? Sure, let’s do something cool.” He grinned, then slid the mask back over his face.

“Okay, awesome! Wait, are you afraid of heights?”

“Nope.”

“Okay, cool.” he was checking his web-shooters and Michelle was pretty sure she knew what he was planning. “Now, hold on to me really tight.”

“Excuse me?” she narrowed her eyes at him.

“MJ, do you wanna swing around the greatest city on earth or not?” she couldn’t see his face under the mask, but she knew he probably had a shit-eating grin on his face. She rolled her eyes, but took a step towards him.  _ This is so weird _ . She looped her arms around his neck, unsure of how exactly she should “hold on.”

“Tighter,” he said, putting one arm around her waist and yanking her closer to him. “Do you want me to drop you?”

“If you drop me, I’m gonna kill you,” Michelle grumbled, but she complied, practically resting her chin on his shoulder. All Peter did was chuckle, which did not do much to reassure her. Then, before she could chicken out, she heard that “thwip” noise and suddenly, she was flying. At least, that’s how it felt. She stared out at the city, her apartment building disappearing in the distance.  _ Man, he really gets some mileage out of the webs _ .

“You know,” Peter yelled over the sound of the wind rushing past them. “It’s kinda hard to swing with just one hand. I hope nothing  _ bad _ happens.” MJ felt his arm loosen and immediately felt a surge of panic.

“Don’t let go!” she yelped, locking her arms around his neck in a vice-like grip. “Peter Parker, do not let go, or I will make you live to regret it!”

She couldn’t hear him, but she felt his chest vibrating with laughter. “I wouldn’t dream of it, MJ!”

As they continued to whiz around the city, Michelle was struck by how magical this was. I mean, how many people get to see their city like this? They started to slow down, before finally coming to a stop on the roof of a warehouse on the outskirts of the city.

“Well?” Peter pulled off the mask, absolutely breathless(who could blame him? The kid was really overdoing it with the physical activity). “What did you think?”

For once, Michelle didn’t have any snarky comments. “Peter, that was…..” she tried to find the word. “That was incredible. I’ve never felt anything like that before.” She realized that his arm was still loosely looped around her waist, but she was too wrapped up in trying to describe how she felt about web-swinging to have a proper freak-out. “Thank you for sharing that with me.” She smiled shyly.

“It is pretty cool, huh?” he smiled. “It’s probably one of the best parts of all this” he waved an arm around vaguely.

“So,” MJ bit her lip. “I’m assuming we go home the same way?”

“Is there any other way to travel?” he winked, pulling the mask on.

“Don’t you dare let go,” MJ warned as she placed her arms back around him.

“I would never,” he responded and, although Michelle couldn’t see his face, she would bet good money he was smiling that huge, “alright, it’s chicken finger day at the caf!” smile that she knew so well.

And then they were swinging through the sky and Michelle couldn’t think of anything else but  _ “this is exactly where I’m meant to be.” _


	2. red

_ memorizing him was as  _

_ easy as knowing all the words to your old favorite song _

 

Michelle Jones had originally thought of Peter Parker as nothing out of the ordinary; just another boy at school, a face in the halls and a voice in the classroom. After freshman year, she realized he had a secret and suddenly, Peter Parker was the most interesting thing at Midtown. Sadly, MJ solved his mystery in no time (he was Spider-Man! Who would’ve thought?), so she thought he would go back to being nothing special. Uh, wrong.

She found herself collecting facts about him; if Peter Parker was a class, she would ace it (well, if  _ anything _ was a class she would ace it. MJ was pretty smart). She knew all the science pun t-shirts he owned, and made mental notes when he added a new one to the collection. She knew that he loved sour cream and onion potato chips, but the thought of eating  _ actual _ sour cream made him gag. She knew he loved  _ You’ve Got Mail _ , that old Tom Hanks/Meg Ryan rom-com, and that whenever he was having a bad day, he watched it. She knew that he thought of Ned as his brother. She knew that he always smiled at her in the hallway, no matter how tired he was.

It was all so  _ easy _ . She was gathering this information absentmindedly, not even realizing that she knew these things until they would pop, unbidden, into her mind. Someone would mention goldfish and she would suddenly remember when Peter told her that he had 17 goldfish when he was little, but that they all kept dying; his aunt finally put her foot down and stopped buying him the fish. Or maybe she would see one of those “Cash 4 Gold!!!” commercials and think about how Peter always talked about how dumb it was that gold’s elemental symbol was Au. It was like he was constantly in her head, adding his own personal commentary to her thoughts.

She didn’t realize how pervasive it was until one day at lunch. She was on her laptop composing an email to their local Congressional representative about the upcoming vote to repeal DACA, hardly even listening to Ned and Peter chatter.

“Yeah, my grandma makes this really good chili,” Ned was rhapsodizing. “It’s got this special sauce in it; she won’t tell anyone how to make it. Oh, and the onions are the best part!”

MJ didn’t know what came over her, but before she could stop herself, she was saying, “Onions make Peter puke.” Ned and Peter stared at her, both looking confused. Michelle could feel her cheeks burning. “What?”

“ _ I _ know that,” Ned said carefully, “but why do  _ you _ know that?”

Michelle thought about it. Why  _ did _ she know that onions always make Peter upchuck?  _ I think I heard him mention it….that time we got hot dogs on 21st after Decathlon practice and he didn’t get onions and I made fun of him. Why do I remember that? _ But she just shrugged, turning back to her computer screen. “I guess I just internalize all the dumb shit you two talk about on a regular basis. Your nerd talk is taking up valuable space in my genius brain.”

They both laughed and the moment passed, but MJ couldn’t stop thinking about it. Why did she know as much as she did about Peter Parker, the slightly-shorter-than-average kid who’s shoelaces were always untied? Sure, she knew he was Spider-Man, and that was a big deal. But she found herself obsessing over the fact that she knew how old he was when he lost his first tooth and that he’s actually really good at doing handy work around his apartment. Things that someone like Ned would know, but not someone like her. Michelle usually found it difficult to get close to people, to really figure them out, but Peter? She knew him like the back of her hand, and she wasn't even trying!  _ This is _ so  _ not cool _ .


	3. treacherous

_ forever going with the flow _

_ but you’re friction _

 

Peter Parker had a lot going on. Sure, every teenager thinks that their life is hectic and full of drama, but how many high-schoolers are slinging webs and fighting crime as an after-school activity? Being Spider-Man was a full-time job, and Peter barely had time to finish all his homework as it was. 

So, seeing as how his life was just one mess after another, he found that it was easier to just go with the flow whenever he could. May was gonna work late so would he “pretty please make dinner?” Sure, no biggie. Flash was writing “Penis Parker” on the bathroom walls? Annoying, but nothing that Peter couldn’t shake off. Pop quiz in Spanish? Just focus and you got this. Going with the flow while he was Peter made it easier to deal with the chaos that came with being Spider-Man. The only thing that threw a wrench in all this peaceful zen he had tried to cultivate? Michelle Jones.

Michelle was chaos personified, and she did everything she could to stir things up and create a storm. She loved to argue and fight back and a day at Midtown High wasn’t complete without her putting up flyers promoting whatever protest she was attending that weekend. When something bugged MJ, she spoke up about it. When someone pushed her, she pushed back harder.  _ It’s gotta be exhausting _ .

He was pondering how tiring it must be to live that way one day during free period. He and Michelle were in an empty classroom; he was editing her history paper, she was working on her column that she wrote for a local social-justice newsletter.

“MJ,” he dropped his chin in his hands, elbows propped up on a desk. “How do you do it?”

“Do what?” she said as she twisted her hair up into a half-hearted bun that was already falling apart as she snapped a rubber band around it.

“All this,” Peter said. “I mean, you come to school, ace everything, you read more books than literally anyone on the planet, you write for the newsletter, you’re captain of Academic Decathlon, you go to a protest or rally every weekend, you-”

“Ok, thanks for the recitation of my hobbies,” Michelle snorted. “Are you asking me for time management tips?”

“No,” Peter wrinkled his nose. “Though those would probably be helpful. I guess I’m asking how you…..well, how you have the energy to care so much. About everything.”

“Yeah, that sounds like something a cishet white man would say,” Michelle rolled her eyes, scribbling something down on her paper. “Sorry I care about the systematic oppression of myself and others, and that I decided to do something about it.”

“No, no, that’s not what I meant!” Peter was frantically waving his hands. “I didn’t mean why you care about social issues and….stuff like that! I meant,” he started to slow down. "How do you have the energy to fight everyday?”

“You tell me, Spidey,” Michelle had looked up from her paper, studying him carefully.

“That’s not-I don’t mean it like that.” Peter ran a hand through his hair. “I can barely get it together enough to be Spider-Man. And that pretty much drains all the energy out of my body. So, as Peter?” he shrugged. “It’s nice to just….go with the flow. It’s easy.”

“Not all of us get bitten by a radioactive spider,” MJ leaned forward over. “Some of us have to fight injustice whenever we can.”

“Yeah,” Peter nodded, putting his head down on the table, resting his chin on his forearm. “I know. You’re right, as always.” he smiled up at her.

“Going with the flow might be easy,” Michelle turned back to the papers in front of her. “But sometimes, you gotta be friction.”

_ Friction. Huh.  _ Peter grinned to himself.  _ That just about sums her up _ .


	4. i knew you were trouble.

_ i guess you didn’t care _

_ and i guess i liked that _

 

Bullies were the worst, in Peter Parker’s humble opinion. Before he was bitten by that spider and before he became a part-time Avenger, he was just a nerdy kid with a backpack that was bigger than him. Middle school meant getting picked last for teams in gym, getting shoved in the hallways, and having everyone in his class boo whenever he answered a question that no one else could figure out. He thought high school would be different. Midtown High School of Science and Technology was “filled with kids like you!” May had promised. Peter was so excited to finally be among  _ actual _ peers. So imagine his disappointment when it turned out that a school for geeks still had a social hierarchy that placed Peter about three rungs up from the bottom.  _ Cool geeks? Who would’ve thought? _ But Peter made the best of it; he had Ned, he was in clubs, and he managed to get invited to enough parties that May stopped worrying about his “social growth.” But just because he adjusted didn’t mean that it still hurt a little when no one wanted him on their kickball team in gym. He cared too much, and he knew that was his fatal flaw. 

Michelle Jones didn’t care, though. She was weird and unfriendly as hell and she simply did not give a shit if you didn’t like her. She read obscure books, she constantly questioned their teachers, and when Flash made snarky comments about her, she would just give him this cold stare that had him shaking in his stupidly expensive sneakers. Peter was a little afraid of her, but he secretly admired how she was unashamedly herself at all times. That was a pretty brave move for a high schooler. He found himself studying her, wishing he could emulate her cool demeanor.

One day at Decathlon practice, they were paired together to do one-on-one quizzing. They had never really spoken before and Peter was a bit apprehensive. Michelle was widely known to not suffer fools gladly. But things were going smoothly and Peter was completely focusing on the questions when something broke his concentration.

“I still can’t believe Liz let that dweeb on the team,” Flash was sneering loudly. “I mean, he might be useful at the next match….if there’s a category on Legos!” He was the only one laughing at that stupid joke, and that should’ve counted to Peter for something, but all he could think about how hard it all was, how hard it was to be even just a little different from other people. He balled his hands into fists, staring at his white knuckles and trying not to get too upset.  _ It doesn’t matter, it doesn’t matter, it doesn’t ma- _

“God, Flash, will you ever just shut the fuck up?” Peter snapped his head up. Michelle had stood up from the table she and Peter were at, glaring at Flash. “You know, maybe  _ you’ll _ be useful at the next match for  _ once _ in your life! I heard there’s a special round where each team lets the guy on the team with the smallest dick answer a few questions.”

Flash’s mouth was wide open, silent for once. Everyone else had stopped what they were doing, staring wide-eyed at Michelle, Peter included.

“Alright, alright, let’s settle down,” Mr. Harrington said nervously. “Get back to the practice questions, please.” The team slowly started quizzing their partners again and, soon enough, the noise level was back to a pleasant hum.

Michelle sat back down in her seat heavily, Peter staring at her in awe.

“Michelle,” he stuttered. “Th-thanks for, uh, saying that. I mean it-it didn’t rea-”

“Why do you let that stuff bother you?” she interrupted.

“What?” Peter was taken aback. May and Ben had asked similar questions before, but never as directly.

“Flash,” Michelle leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms. “Why do you listen to him? I yelled at him because I could tell you were about to freak,” she gestured to the red marks on his hands that were left behind by his fingernails digging into his palms. “But you gotta cool it, Parker.”

“Don’t you think I’ve tried that?” Peter was surprised to find himself getting a little angry, but he couldn’t help it. He was tired of everyone pushing him around and not being able to do anything about it. “I ignore him! That’s about all I can do!” he looked up at the ceiling, trying to gather his thoughts. “I’m just trying to get through high school, okay?”

“Peter,” Michelle said quietly. He met her eyes and was surprised to see that she looked….sympathetic? Not an emotion Michelle Jones usually showed. “Life sucks, okay? Life is a big bag of dicks sometimes. And I know that I can’t make you suddenly apathetic about all the crap people throw at you, but you gotta realize something.” She leaned forward. “Who you are right now? That’s the best thing you can be. Because you’re smart and you’re nice and out in the real world? People will appreciate that. It sucks now, but come on,” she grinned. “Would you really be happy dressing like a douchebag and pretending you like Machine Gun Kelly?”

Peter smiled at her. This was a whole new side of Michelle that he was seeing and he wondered if anyone else had ever seen it before. “How do you do it, Michelle?”

“Me?” she looked at her fingernails, feigning nonchalance. “Well, I know that I’m the greatest. If people here don’t get? That’s their problem.”

Peter started laughing at that and Michelle soon joined in, giggling behind her hands. It felt so nice to hear someone tell him that he was enough the way he was. Sure, May and Ben were always telling him he was smart and that he had “a good heart,” but to have a classmate tell you that you’re the greatest when you’re being you? It made Peter feel all shiny and happy; like someone had just handed him a big blue, first-prize ribbon.

“So, wait,” he said, once their laughter had petered out. “You think I’m smart? And nice?”

“Shut up, Parker,” she rolled her eyes and, all at once, she was back to dark, snarky Michelle. She couldn’t fool Peter, though. Now he knew that, behind the mean exterior, Michelle had a kind heart and a sympathetic ear. And she didn’t seem so scary anymore.

Becoming Spider-Man changed a lot for Peter. Sure, he was still aware that his coolness factor was at about a -5, but what did that matter when he was climbing up walls and stopping bank robberies? He was  _ Spider-Man _ . But even though he didn’t need it as often, he still remembered what Michelle had told him that day. Being Peter, being Spider-Man….it was the best thing he could be. Who cares about the rest of it?


	5. all too well

_ ‘cause there we are again in the middle of the night _

_ we’re dancing ‘round the kitchen in the refrigerator light _

 

Wednesday had become the official study night for Peter, Ned, and Michelle. She had reluctantly joined their duo, already planning on only going once and then making excuses every other time they asked her, but she was surprised by how fun it was to hang out with them. Who knew human contact could actually be enjoyable? Michelle quickly fell into the routine of Wednesday Study Night: she and Ned would go home with Peter, they’d do homework until 6, then order food (usually pizza or Chinese, but sometimes they branched out and got spaghetti from the place on Madison) and play Assassin's Creed for an hour, then get back to their studying. She and Ned would usually leave around 8:30. It was nice and it was normal teenager stuff, which made Michelle’s mom happy and made Peter feel better about giving so much of his life over to Spider-Man. 

It was on a Wednesday such as this when New York City got its first snowfall of the year. Michelle loved snow. It reminded her of when she was little, when she used to see that first snowflake and run outside, trying to catch one in her mouth. Unfortunately, she was sitting in Calculus as she watched the snow fall outside, which meant she had to stay in her seat. Growing up was no picnic.

“Hey,” she nudged Peter’s elbow. “Look.  _ Snow _ .”

He took his attention off Ms. Christensen and looked out the window. “Huh. I wonder if that’ll affect my web shooters. They might freeze up. Maybe I should….” he trailed off, already sketching new designs for the web shooters in the margins of his notebook.

“Peter, your suit was designed by Tony Stark, who has a multi-billion dollar tech company. It’s the most technologically advanced thing I have ever seen with my own two eyes. I don’t think your webs will freeze.” Michelle put her chin in her hands, watching the snowflakes flurry to the ground.

The bell rang, signaling the end of the school day, and MJ hurried to her locker. “Come on, Peter,” she whined. “I wanna get out in the snow.”

“You’re such a little kid,” Peter shook his head, smiling as he put his textbooks in his backpack. “You still wanna come over? Ned was sick today, and I wouldn’t want you to be studying when you could be frolicking in this snow.” he smirked, slamming his locker shut.

“Shut up,” Michelle rolled her eyes, following him out the doors. “We’ve got that packet due in English Lit and you desperately need my help if you’re gonna get full points for it.”

They made their way to Peter’s apartment, trading jokes and jabs while MJ kicked around in the snow as often as she could.

“Hey kids!” May called cheerfully from the living room as they tumbled in the door, stamping the snow off their shoes. “It’s really starting to come down out there, huh?”

“Yeah it is!” MJ smiled gleefully as she and Peter made their way to his room. They quickly  lost themselves in homework, not noticing the snowfall outside turning into a downright storm. Soon enough, 6 o’clock rolled around and MJ and Peter were ready for some dinner. They were arguing over what to get on the pizza when May leaned in the open doorway.

“So, I have good news and bad news,” she smiled nervously. “Which do you want first?”

“Bad,” Peter and Michelle said in unison.

“Um, okay,” May clapped her hands together. “The snow is so bad that no one is delivering right now. The trains have even stopped running. So, looks like dinner is on me tonight!”

“Oh….okay,” Peter had a forced smile on his face and Michelle had to hide her amusement. She was picturing the last time she had eaten one of May’s creations and she knew Peter was in for it.

“Well, I should probably be heading home,” MJ said, trying to exit gracefully before May invited her to stay for dinner. “My mom will be worried or….something.”

“No, Michelle, you should  _ really _ stay,” Peter said behind gritted teeth. “You wouldn’t want me to eat all by  _ myself _ .”

Michelle snorted, trying to cover up her giggles, but they stopped so enough when she heard what else May had to say.

“Well, you didn’t hear the good news!” she exclaimed. “Michelle, your mom called. She said she texted you but you didn’t answer?”

“I turn my phone off when I’m doing homework,” MJ shrugged.

“Right. Anyways, she called me and said she and your dad are both stuck at work since the trains are down,” May leaned against the door frame. “She said, and I quote, ‘Tell Michelle that I know she’ll say she can walk two blocks in this snow, but that doesn’t mean she should.’”

Peter was smiling and Michelle had a feeling she knew where this was going. “She wants me to stay here, doesn’t she?”

“Just until she or your dad gets home!” May said quickly. “The trains could start running any minute. But for now, I guess you’re stuck with me and Peter.” She smiled and left, calling over her shoulder, “I’m gonna get started on dinner!”

“Hungry, Michelle?” Peter smirked. Michelle shoved him so hard he fell off the end of his bed.  _ Oh, this is SO not cool _ .

She and Peter watched some episodes of BuzzFeed Unsolved until May called them in for dinner.

“If we die,” Michelle said solemnly as they walked down the hall. “Just know: you’re a dork.”

“Oh, shut up,” Peter rolled his eyes. “It can’t be  _ that _ bad.”

It was. May (bless her heart) tried, she really did. But the “spaghetti Bolognese” she had made was spaghetti noodles, cut-up hot dogs, and ketchup covering the whole thing.

“We were running low on groceries,” May said apologetically as she started dishing it out. “I had to improvise.”

“Well, it looks….” Peter trailed off, obviously at a loss for words.

“Exotic!” MJ quickly supplied. “Thank you for making dinner, May.”

“Oh, anytime, sweetheart!” she smiled. Michelle loved Peter’s aunt and she would’ve died before telling her that this was honestly the worst thing she’d ever seen. They all dug in hesitantly; Michelle had her napkin in her lap, ready to spit it out if it was truly terrible.

It was bad. Not as bad as it could’ve been, Peter later assured her, but still bad nonetheless. The funny part was, after a few forced swallows, it all became kinda fun. She and Peter kept catching each other’s eye over the table and almost dissolving into laughter because  _ oh my God, what are we eating?  _ The whole situation was ludicrous in the best way possible and Michelle had to admit: she was enjoying herself.

After eating as much as they could stomach of May’s concoction, Peter and MJ rinsed their plates off and made a quick escape to his room before May could offer to make dessert. As soon as Peter closed the door behind them, they both burst out laughing.

“Oh m-my God,” Peter gasped. “The  _ hot dogs _ -”

“With the-the ketchup!” Michelle sputtered. “You should’ve seen y-your face….when you took the-the first bite!” She fell back on his bed, peals of laughter ringing from her mouth. When they both finally got ahold of themselves, Michelle realized they were lying side by side on his bottom bunk and Peter’s face was awfully close to her face and  _ wow, he was cute _ . Michelle had been having thoughts like this for awhile now, and it was really starting to bug her. At first, she had thought that her abnormal monitoring of Peter was just a weird habit she had picked up because Michelle Jones didn’t get crushes; she simply didn’t have the time. But she had been forced to admit to herself that maybe, just  _ maybe _ , she might have a crush on Peter Parker, dork supreme and part-time masked vigilante.  _ I really know how to pick ‘em, huh? _ She had been beating back the butterflies in her stomach for weeks now, but right now they were out of control and MJ couldn’t do anything to stop them. Peter noticed her staring and turned his head to face her. He studied her for a moment, his smile soft and sweet (was it ever not?).

“You have….” he paused, squinting a little. “You have really pretty eyes, MJ.”

Michelle thought her heart was gonna explode; she panicked. Sitting bolt upright, she started fiddling with the hem of her t-shirt.

“So, should we bother to do the rest of the Calc worksheet, or do you think we should just count on school being cancelled tomorrow?” she was desperate to change the subject, desperate to shake off the weird feeling she had gotten by being so close to Peter. She hated feeling this way: out of control and unsure of the outcome, scared to death of this boy sitting next to her on the bottom bunk.

“Uh,” Peter sat up slowly, running a hand through his hair. “I wanna bank on no school tomorrow and, instead of doing homework, we watch _The_ _Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift_. It’s one of the best worst movies ever; you’re gonna love it.”

_ A movie. That seems safe enough. And we’ll be out in the living room. May might even watch it with us. Zero chance of us getting….close _ .

“Sounds good,” MJ stood up. “Might as well do something until my parents get home and I can finally get out of here.” she cracked a smile so he would know that she was kidding and he grinned back at her.

They headed to the living room, Michelle settling on the couch as Peter set the movie up. Soon enough, she was groaning at the inanity of the plot and rolling her eyes at the casual sexism and all the butterflies had pretty much vanished. They finished the movie and, since Michelle’s parents still weren’t home, they decided to rewatch  _ Step Brothers _ because it always made both of them laugh so hard they cried.  

“I think you might just end up spending the night, MJ,” Peter said casually, flopping back on the couch after putting the DVD in. “I mean, it’s, like, 10:30 now, and your mom and dad might not get home until, like, 2 am. You should just crash on the top bunk.”

Michelle just nodded, praying that it would not come to that. Even if she wasn’t nursing this weird maybe-crush on him, she really didn’t want to sleep on his top bunk.  _ Honestly, why does he have bunk beds, he’s a sophomore in high school _ .

At one point, May came in to say good night and to set out blankets and pillow for Michelle.

“Now, I know Peter probably said something about you sleeping on the top bunk, but no one really wants to sleep up there,” May smiled as she set the pile of blankets on the coffee table. “Just bed down here; the couch is really comfortable.”

“Okay!” Michelle smiled. “Thank you so much, May.”

“It’s nothing!” May waved a hand in the air. “I like having you over; you keep Peter on his toes.” She winked and Michelle snickered at Peter’s annoyed look.

It was getting late and Michelle was starting to get sleepy.  _ Step Brothers _ had ended about thirty minutes ago and she was curled up under a Scooby Doo blanket that Peter  _ claimed _ was from when he was a kid and that he didn’t use it anymore.  _ Yeah, okay _ . Peter had started playing music from one of his many playlists (the kid was kinda obsessed with making them) and this one was full of soft, slow songs that made Michelle want to lean her head on his shoulder and go to sleep. She glanced out the window and marveled at how still the city seemed when it snowed. It was dark and quiet and she felt like she and Peter were the only two people in the world right now.  _ Yeah, that’s not good _ . Michelle sat up, trying to shake off the drowsiness.

“Do you have any soda?” she said blearily. “I don’t wanna sleep just yet.”

“Yeah, come on,” Peter smiled. His eyes were a little sleepy, too. He stood up and, to MJ’s shock, he grabbed one of her hands and pulled her up, towing her to the kitchen.

Peter’s hand was warm and a little rough and weirdly, bigger than hers. Michelle knew that if she was more awake, if they hadn’t just spent practically the whole day together, that if the circumstances were even slightly different….well, she would’ve yanked her hand out of his and cracked a joke. But right now, all she wanted was to keep holding his hand, to feel his reassuring presence.

They were in the kitchen now, Michelle standing in the middle of the kitchen, swaying to the music that was still playing from the living room, while Peter opened the fridge to find her a drink. He turned, a Sprite can in his hand ( _ did he remember that that’s my favorite, or is it just a cosmic coincidence? _ ), and laughed softly at the sight of MJ “dancing” half-asleep in his kitchen.

“What are you doing?” he set the soda on the counter, taking a step closer to her. Michelle knew that she should back up, get some distance, do  _ something _ , but she was tired of pretending. She was tired of being scared of her own feelings.  _ This shouldn’t be this hard _ . 

“Dancing,” she smiled at him, swaying a little more. “I like this song.”

“Me, too.” Peter reached down and took her hand again, his other placed lightly on her waist. Michelle looked up from the floor, meeting his eyes. He was looking at her like….like….well, Michelle wasn’t sure, but she knew that he had never looked at her that way before. Almost instinctively, she stepped closer, resting her chin on his shoulder and following his lead as they started to dance.

All Michelle could concentrate on was how unreal this all felt; I mean, here she was, slow-dancing to an Ed Sheeran song with Peter in his kitchen in total darkness, save for the light coming from the refrigerator that he hadn’t closed all the way. This should never have happened, but she knew she was glad it had. She had spent so long denying how she felt about Peter, but she knew know. She liked Peter. She liked him a lot. She might even, dare I say it, want to kiss him. And while usually thoughts like this would have her trying to calculate the probability of him liking her back, tonight she just….let it go. She liked being in Peter’s arms; she’d known that ever since that day he’d taken her for a Spidey-ride around the neighborhood. She felt safe here.  

As the song started to draw to a close, she took a small step back, wanting to see Peter’s face, to gauge his feelings. He was looking at her the same way he had been before and MJ still couldn’t seem to put her finger on what it was.

“MJ?”

“Yeah?” she murmured sleepily.

“I’m really glad you’re here right now.” he drew her closer, putting both hands around her waist. Without even thinking, Michelle placed her hands on his shoulders.

“Uh huh?” she said, smiling her know-it-all grin. “And why is that?”

“Because,” Peter breathed, “I get to do this.”

And suddenly, he was kissing her. Michelle thought her brain was going to explode, but instinct kicked in and she kissed him back. It was sweet and sure and, when they broke apart, Michelle felt like something beautiful had happened. Peter smiled breathlessly.

“You don’t know how long I’ve been wanting to do that.”

“Oh, I have an idea,” she bit her lip. This time, she was the one to lean forward, destroying the distance between them. She was kissing him and he was kissing her and his hands were so tight around her waist and she wanted him to be close, so  _ close _ and her hands were running through his hair and his mouth was on her neck and-

The kitchen light suddenly flipped on. She and Peter broke apart to see May standing in the doorway, looking like a bomb had just gone off.

“What the fu-”


	6. 22

_ everything will be alright _

_ if you keep me next to you _

 

Dating Spider-Man was not as sexy as it sounds. Sure, you got to whiz around the city on webs, and yeah, that spandex suit makes it a lot easier to see how cute his butt is, but there are downsides. For one thing, Michelle was spending a lot more time on rooftops. Sounds romantic, right? Wrong. Sometimes, Peter would drop her off on random rooftops on the way to whatever crime he had to stop and the door to the stairs wasn’t always unlocked. Sometimes there was no door at all! She either had to make her way down 5 stories on a rickety fire escape or wait for Peter to be done. Michelle would complain a lot more about it, but it’s not like Peter was ditching her to go play  _ Call Of Duty _ with Ned. He was helping people. Michelle could wait it out on a roof for that. She wondered if anyone noticed her, doing homework on various Queens rooftops.

Another unsexy thing about being Spidey’s main squeeze? Patching him up after a night on patrol. The first night he had crawled through her window, Michelle thought she was gonna have a heart attack.

She was asleep, but was soon awoken by scratching noises coming from her window.  _ Holy hell, what is THAT? _ She sat up, trying to see what was at her window, but her curtains blocked her view.  _ If I die, I’m gonna be so pissed _ . MJ scanned her room, looking for a possible weapon, but all she could come up with was her Chemistry textbook. Raising it over head, she proceeded slowly to the window, praying that it was just a confused bird and not someone she would actually have to attempt to club with  _ Intermediate Chemistry And You! _

_ Okay, it’s probably best if I act fast.  _ She bit her lip, still focusing on the scratching sounds when, suddenly, they stopped.  _ Oh, no _ . She heard her window slide up slowly, saw her curtains rustle and someone put their foot down.  _ HELL no _ . She rushed at the intruder, swinging her book and making contact with a satisfying “thwack!”

“Ow, MJ, what the fuck?”

“Wha-Peter?” Michelle dropped the textbook on her foot. “Ow, shit!”

“Yeah, you deserve that after beating me with,” Peter stooped down to pick up the book. “Your Chemistry book?” He had pulled off the mask, looking at her with that stupid smirk he got when he thought he might just have the upper hand in this conversation, one eyebrow raised. “Really? That was the best you could do?”

“Next time you decide to break into my house, I’ll have a baseball bat ready,” MJ said sarcastically, shoving him lightly.

“Oof!” Peter winced, bringing a hand up to his chest. “Yeah, maybe don’t do that.”

“Oh my God, what happened?” Michelle crossed the room, turning her lamp on and pivoting to face Peter. In the dark, MJ hadn’t noticed the large cut on his arm, blood running onto his suit, or that he was now the proud owner of a black eye and split lip. “Holy shit, Peter, what  _ happened? _ ”

“Broke up a drug ring I’ve been tracking for a few weeks now,” he shrugged. “Things got rough, but it could be worse.”

Michelle was already moving, motioning for Peter to sit on her bed as she slipped out of her room. She crept quietly down the hall to the bathroom, grabbing her first aid kit from under the sink, wetting a wash cloth, and tip-toeing back to her room. Peter was sitting on the edge of her bed, hands folded in his lap, looking curiously around the room.

“I like your pictures,” he gestured to the corkboard over her desk. There were pictures of MJ with her mom and dad, of the Decathlon team holding their Nationals trophy, of MJ, Peter, and Ned laughing in Peter’s living room, of MJ and Peter, Peter looking at her adoringly as she smirked at the camera. “They’re nice.”

“Take it off,” Michelle didn’t have the time or inclination to make polite conversation with her dumb boyfriend.

“Shouldn’t we take this slow?” Peter grinned. “I mean, we haven’t been dating that long and I do-”

“Peter!” MJ was surprised at how loud her voice was, how scared she sounded. Peter was staring at her, just as shocked. She closed her eyes and blew out a breath. “Just….take off the suit, okay?”

“Yeah-yeah, sure.” he nodded, getting up slowly. He pressed the spider in the center of his chest and the whole thing loosened, looking less like a superhero suit and more like a kid’s pajama set. He shrugged it off, leaving him in boxers and socks. He put a hand on Michelle’s arm. “Hey, look at me,” he spoke quietly. Michelle met his eyes reluctantly. “I’m fine. I really am.” He smiled, but all MJ could see was the dried blood on his arm and the bruises on his chest and he really didn’t look fine at all.

She thought she knew what she was signing up for when she had kissed Peter Parker in his kitchen, but this? Who could have been prepared for this?  _ I can have a melt down later _ . She smiled weakly at Peter, pushing him lightly down on the bed and sitting down next to him, cracking open the first aid kit.

“So, this isn’t a bad night for you?” she questioned, pulling out bandaids and hydrogen peroxide and rolling bandages.

“No,” Peter winced as she dabbed the hydrogen peroxide on the cut on his arm. “This is a mild day.” MJ nodded, winding a bandage around his forearm. She picked up the damp wash cloth and dabbed at his lip, trying to clear up some of the blood. “Ow,” he said weakly.

“Buck up,” she responded, putting the cloth down. “You’re lucky you don’t need stitches. I possess a lot of talents, but a steady hand isn’t one of them.” She looked at the bruises on his chest. “I don’t know what to do about those,” she gestured. “Or the black eye. Should I take a first aid course? I should take a first aid course. I should definitely upgrade the first aid kit, right? More bandages, less bandaids. I’ll go to CVS tomorro-”

“Michelle,” Peter put his hands over hers, stopping her hurried re-packing of the kit. “Slow down. Breathe.” He chuckled softly. “You’re babbling like me right now.”

Michelle closed her eyes, taking deep breaths, doing all the things she had read about. She thought she knew what panicking was, but this was new. This was having your boyfriend; your  _ best friend _ , tumbling through your window covered in bruises. This was having the person that you cared about almost more than anything tell you he was fine as blood trickled down his face. This was real panic and Michelle was afraid of how she was handling it all.

She finally opened her eyes, Peter’s concerned face appearing in front of her.

“Good?” he questioned, squeezing her hand lightly. She nodded, then leaned forward, pressing a light kiss on his lips. He brought his hands up, tangling them in her hair, cupping her face gently. She drew back, looking into his eyes.

“Can you stay here?” she was hesitant, which was a new emotion for her, but  _ God _ , she needed him to stay with her tonight. She knew that she would adjust to this eventually, but right now she needed him to be right next to her. She needed to see the rise and fall of his chest and know that he was here and he was alive and he was  _ fine _ .

“What, like, sleep over?” he cocked his head, trying to see if she was joking or not. When she nodded emphatically, he squeezed her hand again. “I’ll text May.”

Twenty minutes later, a freshly showered Peter was sliding into MJ’s bed, wearing one of her Midtown gym shirts over his boxers.

“Am I losing it, or are your bruises not as bad as they were when you got here?” Michelle sat next to him, studying his injuries.

“I heal pretty fast,” he shrugged. “Guess a radioactive spider bite will do that to a guy.”

“Oh, my God, shut up,” Michelle rolled her eyes, shutting her lamp off and laying down next to him. He wound his arms around her waist, shuffling closer to her and burying his face in her hair.

“I like your shampoo,” he mumbled.

“Mmm,” was all Michelle said. She was suddenly exhausted; it was like the earlier drama had sapped all her energy. She felt fine now. In fact, she felt better than fine. Knowing that Peter was right there next to her soothed her, made her heart slow down and her breathing even out.  _ Everything’s alright _ , she thought before she drifted off.  _ As long as he’s here with me, everything’s alright _ .


	7. i almost do

_ i bet _

_ you’re sitting in your chair by the window _

_ looking out at the city and i bet _

_ sometimes you wonder ‘bout me _

 

New York City was the best place in the entire world. You could try to fight Peter Parker on it, but you wouldn’t win. He loved his city more than anywhere else in the world and he couldn’t imagine living somewhere else. As Spider-Man, he could appreciate the wonders of New York even more. I mean, was there anything as beautiful as the city lights of Manhattan? There was nothing he liked more than grabbing a sandwich from Delmar’s, swinging to the top of a building, and watching the sun go down over the Hudson River.

That’s what he was doing tonight; grabbing a few moments of peace before he had to go back down to the real world, Peter Parker’s world, where he had a History quiz, a Spanish presentation, and a whole butt-load of homework all due tomorrow. But for now? He was content to sit and stare at the city lights. If he squinted, he could make out some stars in all of New York’s light pollution. Michelle was constantly telling him about the light pollution. She loved the stars, the moon, constellations, all of it.  _ “It sucks that we can barely see the Big Dipper while some random dude in the wilderness of North Dakota can probably see the entire Milky Way!” _ she would gripe.  _ “I deserve the stars!”  _ Peter had to agree with her there. 

As he took a bite of his sandwich, chewing slowly, he found his thoughts turning to MJ, as they so often did. He knew that, on nights like these, he could probably find her sitting in the old ratty blue chair that sat next to her window. It was worn out from all the time Michelle spent there, reading her books, or typing an article on her laptop. Peter had watched her there so many times that he could practically see her right now, her forehead crinkled as she turned the page of this week’s book ( _ East of Eden _ ). Maybe she would look up every so often, checking to see if the stars and the moon were hidden behind clouds. Or maybe, just maybe, she would be looking for a figure to swing out of the shadows and onto her fire escape. She’d be looking for him. He looked down at his phone, seeing that she had read his “ _ b there soon _ ” text.  _ I bet she’s wondering where I am _ . But he didn’t make any moves to go. As much as he wanted to see MJ, to make out for a little bit, then have her quiz him on the French Revolution, he needed to sit and think for a little while longer.

He had had a crush on Michelle for awhile, but he never thought anything would come of it. Michelle was strong and smart and passionate and never took shit from anybody, and him? He was just….Peter. Yeah, he was Spider-Man, but it wasn’t like  _ she _ knew that. But then she did. And suddenly, she was everywhere. Nudging him awake in class, swiping him an extra cookie from the lunch line, going to the movies with him and Ned, studying with them on Wednesday nights. It was all so….seamless; like she had been there the entire time, Peter just hadn’t been observant enough.

And then came the night of the snowstorm and dancing in the kitchen and The Kiss. Peter liked to think of it all capitalized, like it was a major historical event because, well…..it  _ was _ . The girl he liked, liked him back. And her dad wasn’t a supervillain! That was a bonus, in Peter’s book.

Dating MJ was, surprisingly, not too different from being her best friend. There was just a lot more making out and a little more teen angst. Even though Ned was his best friend, Peter sometimes found himself telling Michelle things he wouldn’t tell Ned. About how scary it could be. About how badly his wounds could hurt. About the people he couldn’t save. She was always there and she always knew what to say, or when to say nothing at all. She was beautiful and incredible and, as cliche as it sounds, Peter often found himself wondering how he got so lucky.

The buzz of his phone interrupted his thoughts.

 

MJ <3: hey where are you?

 

Peter: sry, lost track of time

Peter: headed ur way now

 

He pulled his mask back over his mouth, shoving his sandwich wrapper in one of the hidden pockets of his suit. He checked the pocket on his other side, making sure that it still held the thing he’d picked up at the bodega on Williams Street.  _ Okay, we’re good _ . He stood up, jumped in place a little, then quickly swung out over the street, headed to Michelle’s. He was there in no time, perched on her fire escape. Michelle hadn’t noticed him yet, but she was right where he knew she would be: curled up in her chair, elbow on the arm of the chair, head propped up in her hand, utterly lost in  _ East of Eden _ . He knocked softly on the window, chuckling as her head shot up, shocked by the sound. As soon as she saw him, her face softened into a smile. She shook her head slightly as she pulled her window open. 

“Hey Spidey, how’s it hanging?” she leaned her elbows on the windowsill.

“Oh, you know,” Peter shrugged. “Saving the city from certain doom, being a hero to all; the usual.” She laughed, backing up so he could crawl in. As soon as he was upright, her arms were thrown around his neck.

“Take off the mask, Peter,” she breathed.

“Buy me dinner first,” he joked, but peeled the mask off his face, shaking his hair out. MJ rolled her eyes, then kissed him enthusiastically. Peter gripped onto her hips, loving the fact that she was here and he was here and they were  _ together _ . They broke apart, Michelle’s arms still twined around his neck.

“You ready to study?” she questioned. Peter groaned, leaning his forehead against hers.

“Can’t we, like, fool around or something? For a little bit? I could’ve died tonight!” Michelle snickered, then kissed him quickly before walking over to her dresser to retrieve Peter’s stash of clothes that he kept at her place.

“You’re gonna die if you flunk out of school,” she tossed him a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt that said “If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the precipitate.”

“Yeah?” he grinned, tugging off his suit. “And why is that?”

“Because May and I will kill you,” she laughed, falling back onto her bed. He smiled back, quickly changing into his clothes and flopping beside her on the bed. They laid there, staring at the ceiling, when Peter suddenly bolted upright.

“Oh, I almost forgot!” he reached down to his suit, feeling around in the pockets for….”Ta da!” he beamed, presenting MJ with a little cardboard package. She took it from him, an amused look on her face.

“Glow-in-the-dark stars?” she looked up from the box at him. “Like, the kind that stick to-

“To the ceiling, yeah!” he bounced a little on her bed. “We can put them up in constellations and solar patterns and all that!”

“Peter,” she smiled, leaning over to kiss him softly. “I love them. But….why did you get me glow-in-the-dark stars?”

“Well, you can’t really see the stars here” he said, praying she wouldn’t find this too corny. “And, like you said the other day,” he put his hand up to her cheek, looking into her eyes. “You deserve the stars.”

Michelle’s smile was so big, it was almost blinding. She hugged him tightly and Peter took this moment to breathe in the smell of her shampoo.  _ God, that smells so good. What fruit is that? _

“Alright,” her voice was muffled until she disentangled herself from Peter’s arms. “You win.”

“What?” Peter was prepared to say more but was struck dumb by the sight of his girlfriend stripping her top off.  “Uh, Michelle, what….?”

“You wanted to fool around,” she smiled. “And, after that sappy display, who am I to deny Spider-Man a make-out session?”

“Your city thanks you, ma’am,” Peter grinned, pulling off his t-shirt.  _ God, what a girl _ . 


	8. we are never ever getting back together

_ i remember when we broke up _

_ the first time _

 

Peter was absolutely head-over-heels for Michelle. That’s why it was so surprising when he broke up with her.

“Yep, that’s it,” he leaned back from the table. “We’re done. This?” he pointed to himself, then MJ, then back at himself. “This is over.”

“Wha-” Michelle looked taken aback. “Why?”

“I can’t be with someone who thought  _ Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull _ was ‘pretty good’!” Peter looked over at Ned, who was snorting into his pudding cup. “Ned? Back me up here.”

“Hey, it wasn’t that bad,” Ned shrugged, trying to avoid MJ’s glare.

“It was interesting!” Michelle waved her hands around. “It had a compelling storyline! Shia LaBeouf was so cute!”

“Aha!” Peter jabbed his fork in her direction. “The truth comes out!”

“Shut up,” MJ rolled her eyes, leaning across the table to kiss Peter. It was slow and it was hot and, when it was over, Peter thought his brain might have melted. MJ licked her lips, settling back in her seat. “Still wanna break up with me, Parker?”

“N-No, I think we’re even,” Peter managed to gasp out.  _ I have the hottest girlfriend in the world. No contest. She’s hands-down the hottest _ .

“Good,” she smiled, going back to her book. Ned caught Peter’s eye, giving him a thumbs up and a knowing wink. He wouldn’t dare say anything out loud. Two weeks ago, he’d walked in on Peter and MJ making out. He made a comment, something about “hot action,” and MJ just glared at him. That doesn’t sound that bad, but MJ had a truly terrifying stare, and Ned was not willing to risk being on the receiving end of her anger just for a dumb sex joke.

This was the first time they “broke up,” but it wouldn’t be the last. They were always saying it, to the point where Ned told Peter, “ _ Dude, if Michelle actually tried to break up with you, you’d just be like ‘haha good one, MJ!’ _ ”

They would break up over movie opinions, over terrible jokes, over books that Peter hadn’t read, over who won whatever video game they were playing. Michelle would break up with him when May would ask her to stay for a home-cooked dinner and Peter would destroy her excuses, an annoying grin on his face. Peter would break up with her when she would take the last wanton. It was silly and kind of weird and it was them. Peter liked joking with Michelle. She didn’t smile all that often, much less laugh, so making her crack up was a feat in itself. Joking about things also made Peter feel a little more normal, more like an average kid who tells dumb jokes and snorts his soda when his girlfriend jokes right back.

In a way, their constant “break ups” reassured Peter about the state of their relationship. I mean, if you were seriously considering ending things with someone, you wouldn’t talk about it all the time, right? You would tiptoe around the subject; he and Michelle were stomping it into the ground.

“Hey,” he decided to bring up the topic one day. Ned’s comment about him not noticing if MJ actually tried to break up with him had got him thinking. “Why do we break up so much?” They were laying in Michelle’s bed, looking up at the glow-in-the-dark stars. They had spent a Saturday afternoon making sure every star was in the right place, Michelle continuously blowing her hair out of her face while Peter compared them to Michelangelo painting the Sistine Chapel.

“Because I hate you,” Michelle said, not even turning to look at him.  _ I don’t what I was expecting _ , Peter thought. But he wanted a real answer. He wanted to know why they both kept joking about something that, should it actually happen, would destroy him.

“Seriously,” he insisted, and something in his tone made MJ sit up, squinting at him.

“This is bothering you, huh?” she tucked a loose lock of hair behind her ear. He nodded, and she sighed, leaning back on her hands. “Why do we break up so much….” she trailed off, trying to think of something. “Because…..because…..well, because it’s like when pigs fly.”

“What?” Peter wrinkled his nose, propping himself up on his elbows. “MJ, please elaborate.”

“ _ You _ know,” she gestured vaguely. “You say ‘when pigs fly’ when you think something’s never gonna happen. We joke about breaking up because….” she looked down, suddenly embarrassed, and Peter could see a blush rising in her cheeks.

“Because?” he nudged her knee, wanting her to finish her sappy thought.

“Because we’re not gonna break up!” Michelle rolled her eyes, shoving Peter back.

“ _ What _ ?” Peter feigned shock. “We’re  _ not _ ? Then what the hell are we doing?”

“Shut up!” Michelle groaned, burying her face in his chest. Peter laughed, draping his arm over her shoulders and pulling her closer. MJ eventually peeked one eye out, half of her face still hidden by his hoodie. “ _ I _ don’t wanna break up. Like, ever.”

Peter smiled so wide, he could feel his cheeks hurting. “Yeah, me neither, babe.” She pushed off his chest, kissing him softly. Peter was only 16, so he wasn’t gonna assume that he knew anything about anything, but this sure felt like love to him.

“As nice as this was,” Michelle drew back, her face right in front of Peter’s. “I’m afraid I’m gonna have to break up with you.”

“Oh, yeah?” Peter grinned, re-adjusting himself as MJ started to climb into his lap. “And why is that?” Peter was laying on his back now, MJ on top of him, her hair hanging in his face.

“Because,” she breathed lightly, lips so close Peter could feel every breath she took. “You just heard me say the sappiest shit I’ve ever said in my life. Hell, I may not just break up with you, I might have to kill you.”

She smiled and Peter thought it was like the goddamn sun had just come out. He chuckled, knowing that he had never felt this way about anyone before and, obviously, Michelle hadn’t either. As they kissed again, Michelle’s hand on his face, his hands in her hair, Peter was sure that they had a lot more break ups in their future.


	9. stay stay stay

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> to me, Stay Stay Stay is a major Peter/MJ song, so at some point i'm probably gonna write a fic completely based on this song lol but for now, i give you this

_ but you carry my groceries and now i’m always laughing _

_ and i love you because you have given me _

_ no choice but to stay _

 

Michelle was annoyed, which wasn’t exactly an unfamiliar emotion for her, but irritating nonetheless. Her mom had sent her to the store to “just pick up a few things, sweetie!” But apparently Michelle and her mom had very different ideas about what “a few things” meant. 

“Lemon zest?” MJ frowned at the list her mom had texted her. “What is lemon zest? Can you even  _ buy _ the zest?” She was aware that she was muttering ominously to herself and that the rest of the people in the grocery store were actively trying to avoid her, giving her a wide berth in the aisles, but she didn’t care. She just wanted to get all this crap and get back home in time for the new episode of  _ Criminal Minds _ . She couldn’t decide who she was more in love with; Derek Morgan or Spencer Reid.

She finally found the lemon zest which, thankfully, was the last item on the list. Of course, she threw in some junk food for herself, then proceeded to the self-checkout lane.  _ Why interact with people when you could just as easily….not?  _ As she bagged her groceries, she groaned to herself.  _ This is gonna be hell to drag back home _ . But she straightened her shoulders, gathered all she could in each hand, and walked out the door, her fingers already stinging from the bag handles cutting into them.

_ Two blocks down, four to go _ . MJ could feel her arms going numb. Exercise wasn’t really her thing; the heaviest thing she lifted was her backpack.

“I’m gonna die,” she was muttering to herself again, a habit that she just never could seem to shake. “Yeah, I’m just gonna keel over and die right here on the sidewalk in front of McDonald’s. Or my arms will just pop off. I’ll have no arms. Which will be fine because I bet they still make hook hands. That would be really cool, ri-”

“Hook hands? Really?” MJ’s head shot up to see Spider-Man, grinning down at her from the street light he was crouched on.

“Yeah, I hear hooks are the latest trend,” she could feel a smile growing on her face. Peter Parker just had that effect on her, okay?

He swung down, landing on his feet in front of her. “Well, as much fun as you would have with those, I would be severely remiss if I didn’t help you with some of these bags.” He grabbed a handful and Michelle could feel her fingers un-cramping. “They don’t call me ‘your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man’ for nothing.”

“Shut up,” MJ giggled, knocking his shoulder with her own. They walked down the street, Peter still in that stupid costume, which meant she had to be careful about what to say. Dating a part-time Avenger was no walk in the park, let me assure you.

“What do you even have in here?” Peter questioned as they neared her apartment building. “I mean….” he stuck his hand in one of the bags, pulling out a package of- “Lemon zest? Can you even buy the zest? I thought you had to zest it yourself.”

“Yes!” Michelle exclaimed, nodding vigorously as she kicked open her building’s door and headed to the elevator. “Thank you! Exactly what I’m saying!”

“Well, I hope whatever your mom is making is better than the casserole May is making tonight,” Peter shuddered as the elevator doors opened and they walked down her hall. “I’ve faced down drug dealers, thieves, robots, and half of the Avengers, but her cooking is still the scariest thing I’ve ever encountered.” Michelle threw her head back and laughed. It wasn’t even that funny of a joke, but there was just something about Peter. He gave her this warm, bubbly feeling that never seemed to go away, no matter the circumstances.

“If it’s really terrible, swing by here later,” Michelle set her bags on the floor as she fumbled in her pocket for her keys. “I’ll save you some leftovers.”

“Oh, you’re a lifesaver,” Peter breathed out, then looked behind him, checking the hallway for anyone else. Seeing that they were in the clear, he peeled the lower half of his mask off and kissed MJ quickly. “Okay, I gotta go,” he rolled the mask back in place. “People to save, lives to change-”

“A Calc test to study for,” MJ reminded him.

“Right,” he gave her a thumbs up. “Calc test. You got it.” He started to bounce down the hall, ready to get back out on the streets. “I’ll swing by later tonight!”

“Okay, I love you, bye!” MJ called over her shoulder, jamming her key in the lock and struggling with the groceries. Then, she realized what she had just said.  _ Holy shit. Did I just-? Did I really fucking say that? _ She whirled around, praying that Peter had already gone before he had heard that declaration, but no such luck. He was standing, frozen, in the middle of her hallway and Michelle was cursing the day she had ever fallen for this loser.

“Uh,” she called down the hall. “Did you….hear that?”

“Yeah,” he said faintly.  _ If he doesn’t say it back, I’m gonna kill him _ .

“Wow, that’s embarrassing,” Michelle sighed, leaning on her door. “Don’t feel obligated to say anything, I was just….speaking reflexively. You know, it happens.  _ You’ve _ definitely done it before, I know you ha-”

She was cut off by Peter taking three huge steps towards her and then kissing her like the world was ending.  _ Okay, so this is going better than expected _ . MJ relaxed into the kiss, forgetting that he was Spider-Man right now and at any moment, one of her neighbors, maybe even her  _ mom _ , could come out and see her sucking face with the guy in the spandex. They finally broke apart, Michelle’s heart beating as fast as it did when they had to run the mile in Gym class.

“I love you,” Peter had pulled the whole mask off, his hair sticking up in the back and a dopey smile on his face. “Like, a lot. And I can’t  _ believe _ you said it first!” If it was even possible, his smile got bigger. “I mean, that was really embarrassing, MJ. That’s a Peter Parker move right there. Maybe I’m rubbing off on you.”

“Oh, please God, no,” Michelle moaned theatrically. “I can already feel my IQ dropping 36 points.”

“Is that really the difference in our IQs?” Peter cocked his head and Michelle burst out laughing. It was the same bubbly feeling as always, but multiplied by, like, a million.  _ I love Peter and Peter loves me _ .  _ We’re in love with each other. This is really it.  _ It was like that feeling you get when the sun is shining, the caf has pizza for lunch, and you get an A+ on that test you’ve been worried about. Like every best day ever wrapped up in one person.

“You’re a dork,” she finally sighed, resting her hand on his cheek. “Like, the biggest dork. Ever. In the world.”

“Yeah, but you loooooove me,” Peter made a kissy face. “You love me soooo muuuu-ow!” He rubbed his shoulder where Michelle had smacked him.

“You deserved it,” she shook her head at him, finding it impossible to clear the smile off her face. He grinned, pulling her in for another kiss, before they were interrupted by one of the many buttons on his suit making a weird, alarm-bell sound.

“Oh, shit,” he said, looking down at the watch-thing on his wrist that was now projecting a hologram of something green flying around on a skateboard-like thing, laughing and throwing little bombs down in the street. “Duty calls.” He pulled the mask back on, squeezing Michelle’s hand quickly. “Can I get a rain check on dinner?”

“Go,” MJ waved her hand, ushering him down the hall. “Call me when you’re done.”

“Okay, bye, love you!” he shouted, running down the hall. He stopped at the one window, wrenched it open, and jumped out before Michelle could even blink. She smiled to herself, worried about Peter but still glowing from the news that he  _ loved _ her. Loved  _ her _ . She grabbed the grocery bags that had been sitting forgotten until now, scrabbled with the door handle, and finally shoving the door open.

“I’m back!” she yelled, hustling to the kitchen before she dropped anything.

“About time,” her mom smiled, washing her hands at the kitchen sink. “Who was making you laugh so loud out in the hallway?”

“Uh,” Michelle scrambled for an answer, but then decided to just fuck it and go with the truth. “Peter. He saw me leaving the store with all the groceries, so he helped me carry them back.”

“I like that boy,” her mom gave her a thoughtful look, drying her hands off on a dishcloth. “He makes you laugh; you need to do more of that.” She patted MJ on the cheek, then started to unpack the groceries.

“Yeah,” MJ smiled, still thinking about the scene in the hallway. “He’s the best.”


	10. the last time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I made a Peter x MJ playlist because oops they're my new favorite ship. Take a listen if you'd like. 
> 
> https://open.spotify.com/user/indiamcc13/playlist/1sXe1n8sGbvsAyiGKAQ1iT

_ and all the times i let you in _

_ just for you to go again _

 

Michelle used to keep her windows locked. Not even for any particular reason; it’s just what you did if you lived in New York City. However, if you were dating someone who has a propensity for climbing through your windows, you should probably leave them unlocked. So, she did. Sometimes she would even leave them open, watching her curtains flutter in the breeze, waiting for Peter to somersault onto her rug. 

“Come here often?” he would grin up at her, and she would smile and everything would be alright.

Or maybe he would just lay there, taking shallow breaths as she kneeled beside him, trying to figure out what was hurt and how to fix it. But he would still be right there with her and everything would be fine.

Michelle didn’t like leaving things open. She preferred to be closed off, shut away from the rest of the world.  _ People kind of suck _ , she would shrug to her parents.  _ I like my own company better _ . And that was true….for a time. But then Peter happened and all the doors that MJ kept locked up tight burst open. He was so open, so cheerful, so out there. He loved to experience the world and he was constantly dragging MJ along after him. “ _ There’s so much to do and see! _ ” he would exclaim. “ _ It’s a big, exciting place, MJ _ ” As long as Peter was there with her, Michelle was willing to open herself up to the world and all it had to offer. It had given her Peter, so it couldn’t be all bad, right?

Michelle let Peter in, in every sense of the word. He flopped on her bed, she read him poetry she had written, he would crawl through her window, she would tell him about her dreams, he wrapped his arms around her and fell asleep, she watched the rise and fall of his chest. She had given Peter a spare key to her apartment and a spare key to her heart.

The only time she ever regretted opening herself up (to Spider-Man, of all people!) was when he had to go right back out through the door he had so cheerfully swung open.

“I have to go,” he said quietly, so quietly that MJ almost didn’t hear him. “There’s a situation. Mr. Stark needs me, I have to go.” They were laying in Michelle’s bed, face to face. MJ had her eyes closed. She was pretending to be asleep.  _ Maybe if I don’t say anything, he won’t go _ .

“I know you’re awake,” he sighed and Michelle could feel the tickle of his breath on her face. She cracked open her eyes. He had that stupid look on his face, the one she called his “Peter Parker the martyr” face. “MJ, I have to go.”

“I heard you the first time,” she murmured, sliding up into a sitting position. He was still looking at her, looking at her like she was made of glass and he was scared that, one wrong move, and she would break. She hated it. She was Michelle motherfucking Jones and she wouldn’t break for anything. Well, that’s how it used to be. Peter…..he brought out something in her, something precious and fragile. Did he know? Is that why he was looking at her like that?

“Go on,” she waved. “Your suit’s on the chair. You need to go.” She mustered up a smile and maybe it reassured him, because he got out of bed and slid the suit on.  _ Stupid Spidey suit _ , Michelle glared at it.  _ Stupid Tony Stark. Stupid, messed up world that needs a 16 year old to protect it _ . Peter turned to look at her, and she hurriedly wiped the bitter look off her face. She pushed herself off the bed, wrapping her arms around Peter’s waist and setting her chin on his shoulder, hugging him as tightly as she could.  _ Don’t go, don’t go, please don’t go _ .

“Go,” she whispered, stepping back.

“Michelle,” he started, but she stopped him.

“Go save the world, Spider-Man,” she smiled, holding his face (her whole world) in her hands. She kissed him softly, helplessly, wishing he would stay with her. But if he stayed, he wouldn’t be Peter, and she probably wouldn’t love him half as much as she did.

“I’ll call you,” he promised, pulling his mask over his face. “When it’s all over. I’ll call, I swear.”

“My window’s always unlocked,” she smiled, but she could feel tears in her eyes and God, she needed him to leave, she needed to leave  _ right now _ before she started crying like some sort of drama queen. He smiled, too, but it was sad and MJ knew that he could tell she was upset. But what were they supposed to do about it? Peter was Spider-Man and neither one of them would change that, but it still made life a million times harder.

“Go,” she gestured towards the window. “They need you.”  _ I need you _ . He nodded, swung one foot out the window, and then….he was gone. Almost like he’d never been there at all. But when MJ turned back to her bed, there was a distinctly Peter-shaped space there and it was enough to make her heart break.

_ Maybe this is why it’s easier not to let anyone in _ , Michelle thought ruefully, sitting on her bed and drawing her knees up to her chest.  _ Because, no matter their intentions, they have to leave at some point _ .

MJ looked over at her window and, without thinking, snorted.  _ Typical _ , she rolled her eyes.  _ He left the window open _ .


	11. holy ground

_ and for the first time i had something to lose _

 

“Yeah, but think about it,” Ned was waving his spoon around, getting dangerously close to splattering Peter’s computer with coffee. “Bigfoot  _ has _ to be out there. I mean,how do you explain all of the evidence? There’s even pictures!”

“Uh huh,” Peter agreed absentmindedly, trying to find another source for his paper on  _ The Odyssey _ . He wasn’t even sure how Ned had gotten on this topic; it’s not like Peter disagreed with him. They were sitting at a table in one of those hipster coffee shops in Brooklyn and Peter felt way out of his element. He and Ned usually stuck to Starbucks or whatever bodega was closest, but they were meeting up with Michelle and it was her turn to pick, so here they were, at The Tattooed Moose.  _ Hipsters _ .

“Where is MJ?” Ned was scanning the place, trying to see if he could catch sight of that unruly head of hair. “She was supposed to be here, like, 20 minutes ago.”

“I don’t know, man,” Peter was still concentrating on his paper, not really processing what Ned was saying. Suddenly, a little box popped up in the corner of his screen. “Oh, come on!” he sighed. “Another virus? I just de-bugged this thing!” But before he could close it, the box opened up into a video screen. Peter squinted, trying to make out anything on the dark, grainy feed.

“Spider-Man,” a robotic voice came out of his computer. “I hope you are receiving this message.” The voice seemed too loud to be coming from his computer and, as Peter looked around, he realized that this video had hijacked every computer, every TV, every phone screen in the area. He would bet money that this was being beamed up on the Times Square screens right now, too.  _ Oh, this is so not good _ .

“Dude, what the hell?” Ned whispered, looking as panicked as Peter felt.

“I had hoped it wouldn’t come to this,” the robotic voice continued. “But I feel this is the only way to get your attention.” A light came on in the video and suddenly, everything made sense and Peter thought he was about to explode.

Michelle Jones was sitting in a chair, hands tied behind her back and a black eye already showing. There was no one else in the frame with her, but Peter could see her glaring at whoever was behind the camera.

“Oh my God,” MJ groaned. “Disguising your voice? Can you get any more basic? I mean, the chloroform, the nondescript white van, the weird basement lair you’re keeping me in; this is definitely the plot of  _ at least _ three  _ Criminal Minds _ episodes. Originality: get some.”

“Quiet!” the robot voice demanded. Peter was frozen; he wanted to spring into action, but what to do? Where to go? “If you want your little girlfriend back, you must reveal your true identity to the world. It’s time people knew who their hero  _ really _ is.”

“Is that it?” Michelle sounded incredulous. “All you want is to know his secret identity? What are you even gonna do with that information? God, you have got to be the worst supervillain  _ ever _ .”

“Oh my God, do you ever stop talking?” the robot voice sounded frustrated, almost as if MJ was getting under its skin. “I’m trying to do an evil villain thing here, and you’re kinda ruining it!” Michelle just threw her head back and laughed.

“Hey, dumbass,” she cocked her head. “Maybe you should turn off the camera before you start whining about how I’m bullying you.”

“The camera is still on? What the fu-” The video feed went dead. 

Peter was already up and moving, headed towards the nearest alley.

“Peter,” Ned panted, hurrying to catch up with him. “The video-I triangulated th-the signal. I think w-we should call Mr. St-Stark.”

“What’s the location?” Peter said tersely, yanking his suit out of his backpack and hurriedly disrobing.

“Man, I really think we should call for some back-up on this one,” Ned was looking at him warily. “What if-”

“Ned, are you gonna be my guy in the chair or not?” Peter barked. He knew he was needlessly yelling, drawing unwanted attention to them, but he couldn’t help it. Every part of him was screaming to go find MJ and destroy whoever took her. Ned was looking at him, worry radiating from every part of his face, but he dutifully started tapping away at his phone. Peter slid the mask over his face.

“Karen?”

“Yes, Peter?”

“Activate instant kill mode.”

“Okay, I just sent the location to Karen,” Ned said, looking up from his phone. Peter raised his arm to shoot a web and get the hell out of there when Ned stopped him. “Hey….be careful, okay? Don’t be reckless.”

“Okay,” Peter nodded, and then he was off, swinging over the city.

“The location Ned sent is 6724 Elton Street,” Karen said, a GPS map showing up in the corner of his eye-screen. “Estimated time of arrival: 3 minutes.”

Peter knew that the cold, hard knot in his stomach was fear: fear that he wouldn’t get there in time, that he would mess up, that he would be cradling MJ’s body the way he had Uncle Ben’s. He had always known, somewhere deep in the back of his mind, that something like this was inevitable. Someone would take May or Ned or MJ or hell, maybe they’d take Paulie, Peter’s favorite hot-dog vendor. They would take whoever they could from his life just because they could. This is what the secret identity had always been about, but now it was failing him in the worst way possible. Michelle was everything to him and the stakes were unbelievably high. Sure, he had been in danger before, but this was the first time he had something….someone to lose. What if he didn’t get there in time? What if he did, but he still couldn’t save her? Would he have to bring her body to the police? Would he have to look everyone in the eye, knowing that it was his fault he didn’t save her?  _ Can’t think like that _ , he determinedly set his jaw.  _ Come on, Spider-Man, buck up _ .

“The location is on your right,” Karen chimed in. “Please be careful, Peter.”

“I’ll try,” he sighed, setting his sights on the large warehouse that MJ was apparently being held in. “Karen, do a thermal-imaging scan.”

His vision suddenly went dark, save for the little orange-ish figures that he could now see walking about inside the building.  _ Okay, three at the door, one sitting watching TV, six patrolling outside and….. _ His heart leapt. There was one figure sitting in a chair, surrounded by four goons and, by comparing the size of their bodies, Peter knew it was MJ.

“Alright,” he spoke aloud to himself (a habit that he just couldn’t kick), “Let’s go kick some ass.”

When it was all over, Peter couldn’t quite remember how he got in the building, or how he disarmed the bad guys. According to police reports, the criminals were found “beaten within an inch of their lives,” and webbed up so tightly that the police were almost unable to break the webbing. They had broken ribs, fractured limbs, missing teeth, black eyes; the whole nine-yards. Peter didn’t remember that, but he had hazy memories of Karen overriding her own system and turning instant kill mode off. He could hear the thud of his fists hitting their mark, the cries of pain from his assailants. But none of that mattered. All that mattered was getting to the back room, getting to MJ.

He remembered that part clearly.

Kicking down the door, he burst into….an empty room.  _ Alright, next room _ . He kicked open the next door and-  _ Yeah, okay, right room this time _ . Michelle was slumped over, still tied up in the chair. Peter couldn’t see her face and every alarm bell was going off in his head, but before he could get her out of there, someone spoke.

“Ah,” a high-pitched, creepy voice came from out of the darkness. “Spider-Man. So nice of you to join us.”

Peter knew that voice, so he wasn’t surprised when the Green Goblin stepped out of the shadows. He had first dealt with the Green Goblin a few months back, and they had been sparring ever since. He couldn’t figure out his end goal, or who it was behind the mask, but defeating the Green Goblin had just been bumped up to number one on his To Do list.

“Let her go,” Peter said, his voice calm, but his hands shaking. “I would say I don’t want things to get ugly, but you’re already here; they can’t get any uglier.”

“Oh, always with the jokes. I told you what I wanted you to do,” the Goblin ran his hand over MJ’s neck and Peter flinched. “And yet, you didn’t listen. Instead, you came here, hoping to fight your way out. That was very foolish.”

“Why do you want to know who I am?” Peter was trying to talk his way through, hoping the Goblin would let down his guard and then Spider-Man could strike. “You have a secret identity, too. Shouldn’t this sorta be the one thing we agree on?”

“If people knew who you were, that would put you at risk. Put the people you love at risk.” The Green Goblin and Spider-Man were circling each other.  _ Come on, come on, come on _ , Peter was waiting anxiously for the first wrong move, then he could grab Michelle, sling a web, and get the hell out of there.

“Okay, so it sounds like you’re just personally attacking me, which is fine, I get it: I’m the cool kid who won’t let you sit at his lunch table,” Peter shrugged, hoping his banter was coming off cool and not terrified. “So why don’t we fight it out? Just you and me? We can leave the girl here, she’s not part of this.”

“Isn’t she?” the Goblin smiled wickedly. “You came running over here….for a girl who’s not part of this?”

“Goblin, I’m warning you,” Peter tensed up, preparing to fight his way out of this nightmare situation. “We can either fight it out like gentlemen, or I’ll have to take you down, Queens-style.”

“Oh, I like the sound of that.” The Green Goblin stepped towards Peter.

Peter didn’t hesitate. He started shooting webs, aiming for the Goblin’s hands. He got one, but the other had already reached for one of the little pumpkin bombs on his toolbelt. He slapped it on to Michelle’s chest, the force of the blow causing her to regain consciousness.

“Wha-?” her head snapped up. “Spider-Man?”

Peter threw a silent prayer of thanks to whatever god was listening; Michelle was relatively unhurt and she hadn’t revealed his secret identity, even though she must be totally disoriented.

“Oh, a bomb?” she had looked down at the ticking bomb on her chest. “How original.”

“Do you ever have anything nice to say?” The Green Goblin turned to face MJ. “I mean, I kidnap you, which was no small feat, I get you here, I hack every screen in Manhattan. I get Spider-Man himself to come down here to rescue you, and you’re still complaining about my lack of originality?” He sounded flustered, and the whiny tone to his voice was causing Peter’s fear to evaporate. Based on past research, he knew he had about ten minutes to defuse the bomb that was stuck to MJ.

“I mean, you’re a guy who dresses like a goblin in his spare time,” Michelle was still lecturing. “I just thought you’d have, like, a castle or something. Maybe there’d be spooky music playing.”

“Who do you think I am, Dracula?” Peter was surprised at how easily the Goblin was letting himself get distracted.  _ He must not have been doing this for too long.  _ Michelle caught his eye over the Goblin’s shoulder, giving him a “hurry up, please” look. Peter nodded, setting his webs to “stun gun” mode.  _ Alright, here we go _ .

“I’m just starting out, you know?” the Green Goblin was still complaining. “Building a criminal empire is hard work, and no one appreciates it! I jus-”

The rest of his sentence turned into a garbled screech as Peter flipped over the two of them, faced the Goblin, and quickly fired three stun webs at him. He dropped like a sack of cement. Peter checked to make sure he was well and truly out, webbing him up a little more just to be safe, before turning to MJ.

“Took you long enough,” she smirked. “Now, get this thing off of me before my heart literally leaps out of my chest.”

“I can’t help it,” Peter shrugged. “I just seem to have that effect on the ladies.” She snorted and Peter felt infinitely better. They were joking around, just like any other day. They were just Peter and MJ. He could do this.

“Okay, so blue wire or red wire?” he hummed. “Which one to cut?”

“Are you serious?” MJ groaned. “This isn’t  _ Die Hard _ ! Just get Karen to scan it for you and she’ll tell you how to disable it.”

“Oh, uh….okay.”  _ How does she even know that? Why don’t I know that? _ “Karen, scan this little pumpkin bomb thingy and then tell me how to disable it please.”

“Scanning….scanning….” Karen’s voice was always so soothing; it was nice to hear someone who always sounded calm, no matter the situation. “Peter, my scanners indicate that, to disable it, you must pop off the green top and cut the red wire. Hurry; you only have 4 minutes and 26 seconds.”

“Ha,” he stuck his tongue out at Michelle. “It was the red wire; this is totally just like  _ Die Hard _ .”

“If this bomb goes off, I’m gonna kill you,” MJ threatened. Peter chuckled, putting his hands on the fist-sized bomb and popping the little green top off.  _ Ooh, there’s the red wire _ .

“Karen, a little help?”

A small red laser beamed out from his webshooter, cutting through the wire easily. All the lights on the bomb went down and the bomb detached itself from MJ’s shirt. Peter held it in his hand, throwing it up and down gingerly, like a baseball.

“Yep,” he smiled. “All in a day’s work. Hey, do yo-”

Michelle had her arms wrapped around him, hugging him tightly to her. Peter reciprocated, his hands stroking her hair. “Hey, hey, it’s okay, you’re okay,” he said quietly.  _ So maybe MJ isn’t as unflappable as she seems _ .

“I was scared,” she whispered. “I didn’t think I would be, but I was. Especially when the whole “sticking a bomb to my chest” thing happened. Not fun. I think I lost at least 5 years of my life.”

“Oh, yeah?” Peter smiled. “Imagine how I felt! Sitting in some dumbass coffee shop where everything costs as least 7 bucks and getting some creepy video message of you and the Goblin? I was freaked with a capital F.”

“Let’s just meet at your house next time,” Michelle drew back, her arms still around Peter’s neck.

“Sounds like a plan.” Peter was so glad that she was safe and, for all intents and purposes, unharmed. She had a few superficial injuries, but he knew the worst ones would be mental. Maybe she’d start having nightmares. Maybe she’d be afraid to walk to the library or the grocery store by herself. Or, hey; maybe she’d be fine. Michelle was resilient like that.

“So, uh, not to ruin the mood or anything, but,” MJ pointed down at the Green Goblin, so wrapped up in webs that he looked like a mummy. “What do we do with this clown?”

“Karen, send a Spidey alert to the police,” Peter said. It was a tech thing he and Ned had come up with; basically, he emailed the nearest police precinct, but it came through on all computers, phones, fax machines, police scanners; you name it, their message came through.

“Spidey alert sent.”

“You ready to go home?” Peter looked at Michelle, trying to read any signs of permanent damage. Her hands went to his face, rolling his mask up over his mouth. She kissed him slowly; Peter savored every moment of it. He had been so afraid to lose her, so afraid of the “might-have-beens,” and the fact that he was holding her right now was blowing his mind. She was safe in his arms and, sure, this just meant one more thing to worry about, but for now, she was okay. They were okay. They were gonna go home and eat cereal and watch one of those TEDTalks that Michelle was always talking about. They were gonna be normal Peter and MJ.

They broke apart gently, Peter resting his forehead on Michelle’s.

“Let’s go home,” she agreed, a small smile on her face. “There’s this TEDTalk on psychopaths that I think could really teach us a lot about this guy,” she jerked her thumb down at the Green Goblin, still out cold.

As Peter swung them both out over the city, he held her as close as possible.  _ I could have lost her today. I’m never letting this happen again. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay, so I know that the Green Goblin is a much scarier figure in the comics and movies, but I just wrote a darker chapter and I wanted this to be a little funnier, so I made him a whiny cry baby lol.


	12. sad beautiful tragic

_ good girls _

_ hopeful they’ll be _

_ and long they will wait _

 

MJ <3: where are you?

MJ <3: should I be worried or nah

MJ <3: oh wait just saw you on tv 

MJ <3: so you’re alive

MJ <3: that’s good

MJ <3: I’ll just

MJ <3: wait here I guess

 

_ Damn it _ . Peter was sitting on top of a building, trying to catch his breath before he had to run off to meet Michelle. It was Friday and they were supposed to go get Korean barbeque. They were gonna meet there at 7 o’clock so, of course, some goons tried to hold up First National Bank at about…..oh, 7 o’clock. Figures, huh? So, Peter had suited up, done the job, and now he was taking a breather before he had to swing all the way to midtown Manhattan. Looking down at his phone again, he typed a quick reply.

 

Peter: im 15 min away i swear

Peter: pls dont be mad i love u

 

Peter knew (well….hoped) that MJ wouldn’t be mad, but it was still good to apologize, right? That’s the considerate thing to do when you’re 30 minutes late to a date because you’re trying to stop a bank robbery, right?  _ There really needs to be a superhero guidebook. Maybe Mr. Stark could write one. I’ll mention it next time I see him _ . His phone buzzed. 

 

MJ <3: I’m not mad! 

MJ <3: as long as you’re alive, we’re good lol

 

He smiled at the screen. He felt bad about making Michelle wait around all the time (one time, he left her stranded on a rooftop for three hours; he didn’t know the door to the stairs would be locked!), or just having to cancel on her all together. She deserved someone who would be there all the time, someone who would drop everything to be with her. Peter tried to make up for it in small ways: the star stickers for her ceiling, getting her coffee every morning, letting her pick what movie to see. He liked to think it was enough. _ I should probably get going _ . 

He hopped off the ledge he was sitting on, free-falling for a few seconds before shooting up a web and swinging down the street. He was at the restaurant in 5 minutes, changed into his civilian clothes in 10, and was strolling into the building at 8 o’clock sharp.

“Hey, loser!” Peter caught sight of Michelle waving at him from a table in the back, a grin on her face.

“Hey,” he strode over to the table, pressing a quick kiss to her lips and taking the seat opposite her. “MJ, I’m so sorry I’m late, there was this bank robbery and the robbers were wearing clown masks, which was  _ so  _ creepy and-”

“It’s okay,” she laughed, putting her hand over his on top of the table. “I get it; you’re a part-time superhero, so you’re gonna be a little late sometimes. I’m used to it, Peter. Besides,” she smirked. “I took your absence as an opportunity to order for you.”

“Oh, no,” Peter groaned. MJ was always trying to get him to eat super exotic foods, like octopus and crickets and, like, brains.

“Yep,” she smiled. “Get ready for a big, steaming plate of jokbal.”

“What is that?” Peter asked warily.

“Pigs feet,” she grinned. “Next time,don’t be late, or I’ll order you the steamed silkworm larvae.”

“Duly noted,” Peter gulped. They had dinner, talking about the next Decathlon meet, who was gonna win America’s Next Top Model, and how Bruno Mars was coming to Madison Square Garden next month, so they better get tickets.  _ Gee, I hope no one commits any serious crimes that night _ . Everything was normal, and Peter could almost forget that he had spent a large portion of today swinging around the city in a spandex suit. Almost. As he and MJ walked out of the restaurant and towards the subway entrance, Peter pulled on her hand, raising an eyebrow.

“Hey, why don’t we Spider-Man it back to the neighborhood?” he grinned, sure that she would say yes. Michelle loved swooping around the city with him. But to his surprise, she hesitated, biting her lip.

“Can we just….” she trailed off. “Can we just be Peter and Michelle tonight? Just your average teen couple? Without Spider-Man?”

Peter swallowed hard. He was afraid that this could be an indicator for a bigger problem, but he was too much of a wimp to face it head on. Instead he just smiled, swinging her hand as they continued on towards the subway.

“Sure! I mean, who needs Spider-Man anyways? You know what they say; three’s a crowd.”

“Well, if we ever wanna get a little kinky in the bedroom, you can call him,” MJ said nonchalantly, not even noticing Peter start to choke on his own saliva. “Threesomes are supposedly pretty hot.”

“Uh, okay?” Peter was trying to gather himself. Sure, he and MJ hadn’t exactly done the whole sex thing, but sometimes she would say things like that and it made Peter want to throw her over his shoulder and get her to a bed as fast as he could swing there. Of course, he would never tell MJ that. She would object mightily to being slung over anyone’s shoulder.

“You look like your head’s about to explode,” MJ laughed, squeezing his hand. “I guess I shouldn’t joke about sex, huh?”

“Meh,” Peter made a noncommittal noise, hoping she couldn’t see how badly she had him wrapped around her finger.  _ She’s gonna be the death of me, I swear _ .  They continued down the stairs, catching the train back to Queens, Michelle leaning on Peter’s shoulder. They were there in no time, and started the walk to their neighborhood, aimlessly talking about everything and nothing.

“Hey, MJ?” Peter said, balancing on the edge of a curb as if he was on a tightrope.

“Yeah?”

“Do you wish I wasn’t Spider-Man?” Peter didn’t know where he got the balls to say that, but it had been on his mind ever since she had said that thing about wanting to be normal and take the train, no Spider-Man. She stopped short, looking carefully at him.

“Peter,” she took a deep breath, running a hand through her hair. “I love that you help people. It scares me to death, and sometimes, when you get hurt  _ really _ badly,” she shrugged. “Yeah, it’s crossed my mind. I’ve wished that you would just hang it all up.” Peter opened his mouth, but MJ held up her hand. “But then, I see you on TV helping some little kid find his mom in the park, or getting a cat out of a tree and I know that you mean something to people. Spider-Man is a part of you and,” she smiled, stepping closer to Peter. “I love you, so that means I love Spider-Man.”

“Well, that’s a relief,” Peter smirked, sticking his fingers through MJ’s belt loops and tugging her closer to him. “‘Cause if you’re not down with Spidey,” he moved closer to her, their faces almost touching, his voice dropping to a whisper. “Then I might just have to break up with you.”

“Shut up,” Michelle smiled and Peter felt his heart do a flip. They kissed slowly, MJ’s hands running through his hair, tugging slightly. They only stopped when an old woman out walking her dog clicked her tongue at them disapprovingly. Both giggling, they continued their walk back home.

“Why did you ask if I wished you weren’t Spider-Man?” MJ finally asked, swinging their connected hands back and forth.

“Well,” Peter tried to put it into words. “I don’t know, I just feel like a bad boyfriend, you know? I’m always late or just not showing up at all, and that’s not fair to you.”

“Peter,” Michelle had stopped, turning to face him. “You’re not a bad boyfriend. You’re the opposite. You’re, like, the best boyfriend. Ever. Who else would get me glow-in-the-dark-stars just because I complain about light pollution? Who else would make dozens of weird playlists for me that express, like, every emotion ever? Who else would go to that exhibit of feminist art with me? You’re there for me when I need you. And if you’re a little late?” MJ shrugged. “I’ll wait.”

Peter kissed her quickly, almost before she had finished her sentence. Michelle had just banished every bad, scared feeling he had had deep down in the pit of stomach.

“I love you,” he leaned his forehead against hers. “Like, so much. It’s almost unfathomable how much I love you right now.”

“That’s always good to hear,” MJ’s smile was small, but right then, it seemed like the whole world to one Peter Parker. She took his hand, dragging him back towards her apartment building.

“MJ?”

“Yeah, yeah, I love you so much, too. God, you’re so needy, Peter.”

Peter wished he could stay in this moment forever: he and MJ laughing so hard it could be heard from across the street, holding hands as tightly as they could, and loving each other unfathomably.


	13. the lucky one

_ and your secrets end up splashed on the news front page _

 

Something was not right. Michelle wasn’t sure what it was exactly, but she knew something was up. It had started when she walked through Midtown’s doors this morning. 

“Yo, Michelle,” Cole, a guy in her gym class skateboarded by. “Congrats! You know how to play the system, man!”

“Uh, thanks?” MJ  rolled her eyes.  _ Typical skater, stoner dude-bro _ .

“Michelle, you have to tell me all about it!” Betty Brant, from AcaDec, was now walking beside her, hugging her books tightly to her chest.

“All about….what?” MJ wrinkled her nose.  _ Okay, this is getting weird _ .

“Oh, okay,” Betty giggled. “Playing it cool, huh? Don’t want Peter to know? I get it.” And then she was gone, off to her class.  _ “Don’t want Peter to know?” What the hell does that mean? _  MJ just shook her head, hoping that this would be where the weirdness ended. No such luck. People kept calling out to her, congratulating her or holding up hands for high-fives. Girls were getting all giggly. Michelle had no clue what was going on, but if she was a betting girl, she would put all her money on this somehow being Peter’s doing.

It was free period and she was sitting in the back, working on her Spanish homework. Ned was sitting beside her, talking about the technology behind the CGI Princess Leia at the end of  _ Rogue One _ . Peter was in a different classroom, making up an English Lit quiz that he’d missed last week. Things were finally quiet and normal and no one had yelled anything confusing at her, so MJ was finally relaxed. Of course, Flash had to ruin everything.

“Hey, Michelle!” he called, a stupid smirk on his face. “Uh, what’s your favorite bug?”

“I’m literally gonna kill you in your sleep,” she deadpanned, not even looking up from her paper.

“You sure you don’t have a fondness for…..” he paused for dramatic effect.  _ What a loser _ . “....spiders?”

MJ froze. Now, if she was dating anyone else, this wouldn’t be an issue. But when your boyfriend spends his off-hours being Spider-Man, you get supremely paranoid when anyone mentions a certain insect around you. Last Halloween, their Chemistry teacher had decorated his classroom with fake spiderwebs. He took them down when she, Peter, and Ned had walked into the room and all yelped, Ned dropping his books on the ground.

“What are you even talking about, Flash?” she looked up slowly, ready to talk her way around whatever he was about to throw at her.

“Haven’t you seen the news?” he raised an eyebrow. “You’re front-page news, sweetheart!” And with that, he tossed a copy of the  _ New York Post _ towards her. MJ caught it and, catching sight of the cover, her stomach dropped.

There she was on the front page, her arms draped around Spider-Man’s neck, smiling at him like a total dork.  _ How did they get a picture of this? We were on top of a 10 story building! _ The headline read “WEB OF LOVE: Will Spider-Man’s New Girl ‘Stick’ Around?”

“Did you finally dump that loser, Parker?” Flash was still talking, oblivious to MJ’s shock. “I mean, I know anyone is a trade-up from him, but Spider-Man? Damn, girl, you really know how to upgrade.”

“Shut up, Flash,” Ned spoke up. He was looking at the headline over Michelle’s shoulder, panic rising in his eyes. Michelle was already up and out of her seat, smacking Flash on the back of the head as she passed.  _ This is insane. This is insane! What if my parents see this? What am I supposed to say? Oh my God, this is INSANE!!!  _ MJ was storming down the hall, finally making it to an empty classroom. She slammed the door open; Peter jerked his head up, looking shocked.

“MJ, what’s up? Did you need something? Or is this period already over? I’ve still got-” he stopped talking once MJ slammed the copy of the  _ Post _ down on his desk. His jaw dropped, eyes wide, as he slowly picked up the paper. Michelle sat down next to him, dropping her head onto the desk.  _ This can’t be happening _ . A few minutes later, she heard Peter clear his throat.

“Did you read it?” she said, her face still pressed into the desk.

“Yeah,” he said quietly.

“What did they say?” she picked her head up, meeting Peter’s eyes.

“Well,” he straightened the paper out. “They don’t know your name or who you are, so that’s good. Um, basically it’s just a whole lot of spider puns about how you’re ‘tangled in my web’ and that I really know how to ‘sweep a girl off her feet’.” Peter was snickering now, and MJ could feel the beginnings of a smile on her face. I mean, it  _ was _ pretty funny.

“How did they even get that picture?” MJ groaned. “We were, like, 100 feet away! Why is the picture-quality so good?”

“They make some pretty high-tech cameras these days,” Peter shrugged. “I’m gonna text Happy; he’ll make sure this story dies.”

“Yeah, but everyone here knows!” MJ was frustrated at how out-of-control this whole situation was. “Flash is the one who gave me that stupid thing! People have been high-fiving me all day! They think I’m cheating on you with Spider-Man!”

“Oh,” Peter’s forehead wrinkled. “Wow, didn’t even think of that….huh. Wait, why are people congratulating you for cheating on me with this punk?” he smacked the newspaper.

“Because you’re not as cool as him,” Michelle snorted. “One of the downsides of a secret identity, huh?”

“You said it, sister,” he sighed, still looking at the photo on the front page. “Well, who cares what everyone thinks? We know what’s going on.”

“Yeah, but….” MJ sighed. “This just blows, you know? I mean, I didn’t think my personal life would suddenly end up in newspapers. And it’s not like I have a secret identity! Everyone who knows me, knows that that’s me, hanging all over stupid Spider-Man!”

“I know it sucks, babe,” Peter put his hand on top of hers, squeezing it gently. “And I hate that this is happening to you. It’s all my fault. But people will forget about it in no time, you’ll see. Hey, I’ll even get Happy to erase it off the internet, so no one will have any record of it!” He was smiling at her, trying so hard to make her feel okay about this. The funny thing was, he did. He always made everything better, sometimes without even trying.

They left the empty classroom once the bell rang (they might have taken advantage of the alone time and had a quick little make-out session, but who’s to say?), fingers intertwined.

“Dude,” Flash yelled across the hall. “That’s not your girl anymore; that ass belongs to Spider-Man!”

“Oh, so you think of women as property?” Peter raised one eyebrow. “Real classy, Flash. Real classy.” He and MJ kept walking down the hall, leaving Flash sputtering in their wake.

“I’ve taught you so well,” MJ smiled, leaning over to kiss his cheek.

Michelle was surprised to find that Peter was right; after about two weeks, people had stopped asking her about Spider-Man. She told her parents that the picture was just her thanking Spider-Man for rescuing her that time she got kidnapped by the Green Goblin (thank God, they bought it). No one stopped her on the street and demanded to know her name and how she knew Spider-Man. She had almost forgotten about the whole thing, until one day when she was laying on Peter’s bottom bunk, waiting for him to change out of the suit. She was scanning his walls when she noticed a new addition: the front page of the New York Post was tacked up on his wall. Peter grinned, noticing her staring at it.

“I think it’s funny,” he said, pulling on some sweatpants.

“Mmhm,” MJ rolled her eyes. “Yeah,  _ sure _ you do.” But, as she looked back at the page, taking in the stupid headline, she found herself snickering, then full-on laughing. Peter flopped down next to her on the bed, pulling her into his arms.

“What do you think?” he smiled, smacking a kiss on her cheek. “Are you gonna ‘stick around?’”

“What do  _ you _ think?” Michelle smiled, kissing him slowly.  _ Hey, he’s right; it IS pretty funny _ .


	14. everything has changed

_ you’ll be mine and i’ll be yours _

 

Michelle didn’t like to think of herself as a jealous person, much less a jealous girlfriend. She was too cool for that, too aloof. Mysterious enigmas aren’t bothered by the actions of mere mortals. That all changed one day in the girls’ bathroom. 

Michelle was sitting in a stall, doing her business and scrolling through Instagram on her phone when she heard a group of girls walk in. She didn’t really pay any attention to their conversation until she heard the words “Peter Parker.”

“I mean, he’s a total dork,” one girl was saying. “But he’s so cute! And have you  _ seen _ him in PE class? His arms? Like, holy shit, he must be putting in  _ serious _ work at the gym.”

“And he’s so nice,” Michelle recognized this voice: Sarah Eustis, who sat behind her in Spanish and was just generally insufferable. “Like, this one time? I dropped my books in the hall and he helped me pick them all up!” Sarah sighed. “Such a gentleman.”

Michelle was working hard to stifle her laughter. First of all, she wished Peter was here right now; the look on his face would have been priceless. Secondly, she thought it was hilarious that these girls thought Peter was some sort of heartthrob.  _ They think he’s just a dork? They should see him playing Just Dance with Ned in his pajamas. Full-on dweeb territory _ .

“Isn’t he dating someone, though?” Michelle focused back on the conversation.  _ Yeah, that’s right, he is, suck on that _ !

“Ugh, Michelle Jones,” Sarah said, and Michelle could practically  _ see _ the look of distaste that was probably plastered on her face right now. “She’s  _ such _ a freak. Has, like, two friends. She’s always reading or, like, doodling some crappy drawing in her notebook.”  _ Yeah, Sarah Eustis is no longer just insufferable; she’s now officially Bitch #1 on my list _ .

“Doesn’t seem like she and Peter really go together,” mused one girl.

“They don’t,” Sarah responded. “Which is why he’s totally gonna dump her ass any day now and I’m gonna snatch him up. Of course, I’ll have to do a little polishing; get rid of the Legos and his weird friend. But we’ll look  _ so _ cute together at prom, don’t you think?”

“Oh, for sure.” Michelle swung open the stall door to face the shocked faces of the gossiping girls. “You’ll probably win prom queen!” She had pasted a fake, cheerleader-ish smile on her face, trying to hide how angry she was.

“Michelle, we didn’t know you were in here!”

“Yeah, we were just talking, you know? Just idle chatter-”

All of them were hurriedly backpedaling, hoping to avoid MJ’s wrath. All except Sarah. 

“It’s true, and you know it,” she shrugged, turning to the mirror and reapplying her lip gloss. “You and Peter are too different. The novelty of dating a moody hermit will wear off and he’ll break up with you.”

“Hey, Sarah? Shut the  _ fuck _ up.” MJ could feel his fingernails digging into her palms. She was so mad she could hardly think straight.  _ God, please don’t let me lose control and take a swing at her _ .

“Excuse me?” Sarah turned, her mouth open in shock.

“You heard me,” MJ said, slowly backing Sarah up against the sink.  _ Jesus, when did my life turn into an MTV movie special?  _ “And, just so you know: Peter’s perfect the way he is and if I  _ ever _ hear you say anything about ‘polishing him up’ again, I’ll end you.”

She didn’t wait for Sarah’s reaction; just turned on her heel and left, that irrational anger still bubbling up inside her. She was mostly angry about how Sarah had talked about Peter; as if he were someone who needed fixing before he could be deemed alright, as if he wasn’t alright the way he was. But, deep down, she felt uneasy because….well, what if Sarah was right? What if Peter got tired of dating someone who’s sort of mean and withdrawn and hard to understand? MJ knew she wasn’t exactly the easiest person to be around, but she thought that Peter liked that.  _ This is crazy; Peter loves me. I’m letting those stupid girls get to me _ . Michelle shook her head, trying to clear out all of their harsh words. She went back to the art room, retaking her place on the counter and watching the freshmen class struggle to make ceramic pots. Michelle hung out in the art room sometimes; she and the teacher had an understanding. She liked the smell of the paint and the clay, the Top 40 radio station that was always on, the hum of conversation. She would hang out here and read, lost in her own world.

Michelle buried herself in her book ( _ All The President’s Men _ ) until the bell rang, signaling the end of another school day. She reluctantly headed to the hallway with her locker.  _ I’m gonna see Peter and he’s gonna know something’s wrong as soon as he gets one look at my face because that’s just who he is _ .

“Hey, babe,” and there he was, leaned up against the lockers and staring at her with his stupid, cute, puppy-dog face. “You still wanna get coffee, or are you gonna work on Decathlon stuff at the library?”

“Let’s get coffee,” Michelle shoved her History textbook in her backpack. “I wanna get out of here.”

“What’s wrong?” Peter was following her as she walked quickly down the hallway. “Come on, MJ, I know something’s up.”

“It’s nothing,” she gave him a small smile, shoving open the door and walking out into the sunshine. 

“No, it’s not nothing,” he persisted. “Tell me. Come on, tell me.”

“Am I a moody hermit?” she stopped suddenly, turning to face him head on. He stared at her, a look of confusion on his face.

“Uh, I don’t-um, well….no?” he rubbed the back of his neck self-consciously. “Is that the right answer? I don’t really know what to-”

“Do you think you’re gonna get tired of this?” Michelle was tugging at a stray lock of her hair. “You and me?”

“Wha-MJ, no!” Peter’s hands were on her crossed arms, a look of total earnestness on his face. “Come on, you know that! I love you, you weirdo.” He smiled, folding her into a hug and Michelle melted. She always did when he hugged her.

“I love you, too,” she smiled.

“So, where’s all this coming from?” he pulled away, taking her hand and leading her to the closest Starbucks (it was his turn to pick the coffee place and Peter was nothing if not hopelessly mainstream).

“I just…” Michelle hesitated, not sure how to spin this. “Some girls were talking about you in the bathroom-”

“What?” Peter sputtered. “What were they saying?”

“Just about how  _ hot _ and  _ nice _ and  _ perfect _ you were,” Michelle cooed, laughing as Peter’s cheeks turned bright red. “They all think you’re a catch.”

“Well, uh,” Peter shrugged. “What can I say? Ladies love me.” They both snickered, swinging their hands back and forth as they continued down the street. “Is that what got you so freaked out?”

“No,” MJ sighed. “Sarah Eustis-”

“That girl you hate in our Spanish class?”

“Yeah, that’s the one. Anyways, she started talking about how you’re dating me, but that I was a super-weirdo and that you’d get tired of dating me and then you’d start dating her and she’d ‘polish you’ and make you not-a-dork and-”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, calm down,” Peter stopped her, squeezing her hand. “You’re rambling like crazy.” 

“I know,” Michelle breathed out heavily. “But it made me so mad. You don’t need to be fixed and I’m not a freak and-” she broke off. “Ugh! I just hate high school sometimes.”

“MJ,” Peter was looking at her with his “I’m gonna make everything better, okay?” smile. “I love you. You know that. And that’s not gonna change. Fuck anyone who says I’ll get tired of you! I’m yours and you’re mine and that’s all that matters.”

“Oh, I’m yours, huh?” Michelle raised an eyebrow. “Women aren’t property, Peter.”

He groaned. “I know, MJ, I know, but just let me say something cute for once.”

“I know,” she smiled, leaning in and kissing him softly. “Thank you for saying all that. I love you, you know?”

“I love you, too, you moody hermit,” Peter smiled, dragging her by the hand down the sidewalk again. “Now, let’s get coffee and then we can go back to my place.” He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. “I mean, word on the street is that I’m a catch. You’re a lucky girl, you know?”

“Oh, do I,” MJ agreed, following him breathlessly down the street. “I’m yours, remember?”

“And I’m  _ yours _ ,” Peter called over his shoulder. “And the next time you hear anyone say shit about us, just remember that.”

Michelle couldn’t contain her smile.  _ How could I forget? _


	15. starlight

_ don’t you dream impossible things? _

 

Peter wasn’t much for mystical stuff. Astrology, crystals, tarot cards; it was all just a bunch of garbage to him. Lately, though, he had started learning more about all that stuff, because guess who was a huge believer in star signs and balancing your chakras? 

Michelle made star charts for everyone she encountered and she had a whole collection of crystal pendants that she would wear, depending on what energy she needed that day. She had a window box on her bathroom window where she grew herbs. Sometimes, Peter was half-convinced she was a witch. So, when MJ blamed rising crime rates on “Mars being in retrograde,” or she spent a whole free period reading the AcaDec team’s palms, Peter just nodded along, pretending that he had even half a clue about what she was talking about. He tried, he really did (May had laughed until she cried when she found him reading a book called  _ Crystal Healing and the Human Energy Field _ ), but he just couldn’t seem to wrap his head around it all.

It was Saturday night and Peter was spending yet another night at MJ’s. He sometimes wondered about what they would do if her mom or dad happened to burst in; hopefully his spidey-sense would save him from that situation.

“Hey,” MJ’s voice was quiet. He could hardly see her face through his half-closed eyes.

“Hmm,” he let out a low groan, but still cracked open his eyes. “What?”

She propped herself up on her elbows. “Did you have any dreams? Like, in the past few days? Or just tonight, I don’t mind.”

“Um,” Peter closed his eyes again, pulling her closer to his side. “Let me think…..uh, a few nights ago, I dreamed that me and Ned were getting chased by a big lizard, but, like, really slowly. Like, it was creeping up on us as we were walking around, but we knew it was there. And the lizard wasn’t, like,  _ huge _ , or anything; more like the size of a big dog or something. I don’t know, it was weird.”

“Hmm,” Michelle furrowed her brow, looking thoughtful. “The lizard could represent your worries about the stuff that’s going on in your life, like all your responsibilities: Spidey and otherwise. And the fact that Ned is there….” she rolled onto her back. “That could mean that, yeah, you might be worried about stuff, but you know that people have your back, so you’re not as worried as you would normally be.”

“Huh,” Peter wiggled a little, trying to get into a more comfortable sleeping position. “That’s cool, babe.”

“Okay, what’s another dream you had?”

“Uh….I dreamed we had popsicles for lunch.” 

“Is that it?”

“Yeah, it was a pretty good one.”

“Anything more interesting?”

“Hmmm,” Peter was trying to come up with something, but truth be told, if he wasn’t having terrifying nightmares about the deaths of everyone he cared about, his dreams were pretty bland. “I don’t know, MJ, I don’t really remember any.”

“Don’t you dream about crazy stuff?” She was sitting up now and Peter knew that there was no hope of getting her to go back to sleep now. “Like winning the lottery, or being able to fly? Or going skiing and being super good at it, even though you’ve never skied before?”

“No, but it sounds like  _ you _ have some pretty interesting dreams,” Peter chuckled, sitting up and leaning his head against the wall.

“Your subconscious sounds boring as hell,” MJ concluded, burrowing into Peter’s side and leaning her head on his shoulder.

“Yeah, well, I don’t really put much stock in dream stuff anyways.”

“What do you mean?” MJ pulled away from him, making direct and slightly uncomfortable eye contact.  _ Oh God, I hope she doesn’t yell at me _ .

“You know,” Peter sputtered. “All that mystical stuff you’re in to. The star charts and the crystals and….what not.”

“You don’t ‘believe’ in any of it?” MJ was surprisingly not yelling at him, but she had a self-satisfied smirk on her face that let Peter know she had the upper hand in this conversation, no matter what he said.

“That’s right,” he said with false bravado. “I don’t believe in it.”

“So,” Michelle was speaking slowly, savoring what would soon be her winning argument. Hey, there was a reason she was vice president of the debate team. “You, Peter Parker, the boy who was bitten by a radioactive spider and suddenly gained superhuman powers, don’t believe in ‘mystical stuff.’”

“Well, that’s different, that’s science, it’s no-”

“Some of your powers,” Michelle spoke over him, determined to make her point. “Even have psychic properties, but you don’t believe in all that stuff, right?”

“Wha-I’m not psychic!” Peter frowned.

“What do you call those feeling that you get when you know something’s about to happen, even though you have no reason or explanation as to how and/or why you would know that?”

Peter opened his mouth, but reluctantly shut it again.  _ Damn, she’s really got me here _ .

“Yeah, that’s what I thought,” MJ smiled again, brushing her hair out of her face. “I have one last point to make.”

“Oh, God,” Peter moaned, sliding down and putting one of Michelle’s pillows over his face.

“You say you don’t believe in all this stuff,” MJ’s voice was muffled by the pillow. “And yet, you work with Thor, who is literally a Norse god. A god. With a magic hammer. But you don’t believe that I can figure out key aspects of your personality based on where the stars were positioned at the time of your birth. Do I have this right?”

“MJ,” Peter yanked the pillow off his face. “I know. I’m being dumb. What’s new? And yeah, you made some valid points, but don’t think you’ve swayed me.”

“How is that possible?” Michelle smiled, laying back down next to Peter, sliding her arm over his waist.

“My life is crazy enough,” Peter admitted. “If I honestly believed that you can tell me my future with your tarot cards, then my head would explode. It’s too much; I already have to fathom the idea that I can literally stick to buildings.”

“I get it,” MJ sounded sleepy and Peter was glad that this discussion was winding down. “Don’t worry; I can believe enough for both of us.”

“Okay,” Peter smiled, leaning forward to kiss her forehead. “You do that.”


	16. begin again

_ and you throw your head back laughing like a little kid _

_ i think it’s strange that you think i’m funny _

 

Peter Parker wasn’t under any illusions as to how cool he was. He knew he was a dork, a nerd, a total geek. But he liked the things he liked and he wasn’t gonna change that just because some people didn’t get it. The only time he ever really felt the hot shame of being hopelessly uncool was when he would try to make anyone other than Ned or May laugh. 

“Alright class, pick the subject up with tongs and insert it slowly,” their chemistry teacher would caution.

“That’s what she said,” Peter would nudge his lab partner’s elbow. “Am I right?” The most he would get was a half-hearted chuckle.

“Wow, that angle must be freezing,” he would pipe up in Calculus.

“What do you mean, Peter?” Ms. Christensen would say.

“It’s less than 32 degrees!” he would grin. Ms. Christensen laughed; no one else did. In fact, many of his classmates decided to throw wadded up pieces of paper at him.

He tried not to let it bother him, but he couldn’t help it. When he was Spider-Man, everybody laughed at his snarky quips! But as Peter Parker? He was just another kid with way too many educational jokes up his sleeves.

One day at lunch, he and Ned were talking about how hard it would be to code an app that would run the same facial recognition that Karen did in his suit.

“I need something that I can use when I’m not suited up,” Peter explained.

“Yeah, I think if I connect the suit to my computer, I could probably lift a fair bit of the programming and configure it so it would work as an app.” Ned mused, picking at his meatloaf. MJ was sitting across from them, lost in  _ Hamlet _ .

“Hey,” Peter got Michelle’s attention. “Wanna hear a joke?”  _ She’s my girlfriend, she’s practically obligated by law to laugh at my jokes _ .

MJ looked up slowly, “no” already forming on her lips. But Peter pulled out his puppy dog eyes, and he could see her resolve softening. “Alright,” she sighed, putting her book down. “Tell me a joke, Peter.”

“Why did Shakespeare write with ink?”

“Because that was the primary form of writing in his day?” she raised one eyebrow.

“No,” Peter grinned gleefully. “Because he couldn’t decide which pencil to use...2B or not 2B.” He leaned back in his chair, waiting for a round of applause, or a chorus of groans; really, it could go either way.

MJ just looked at him, almost incredulously. Peter was worried that her stone-cold stare meant she didn’t like the joke, but then he saw the corners of her mouth twitching and her eyes were sparkling in that way that meant she was about to laugh. And then she did. Like, head-thrown-back, eyes-crinkled-shut  _ laughing _ .

_ She’s so beautiful _ , Peter marveled.  _ And kind. And smart. God, she’s smart. God, I love her _ . He couldn’t help himself; he leaned across the table and kissed her, cupping her face in his hands. When he finally sat back down, Ned was staring at him, half-grossed out, half-proud.

“Dude,” he finally spoke up. “I’m  _ eating _ .”

“I love you,” Peter ignored Ned, still staring at Michelle, still absolutely caught up in how amazing she was. I mean, he had always known she was amazing, but sometimes it just crept up on him and he realized it all over again.

“I love you, too,” she smiled, reaching her hand across the table to take his.

Peter knew that being Spider-Man brought a lot of uncertainty to his life and, by extension, to Michelle’s. He knew that dating him was hard, much harder than any other average high school relationship. But they loved each other and, when all was said and done? That was all that mattered. Because whether he was swinging her around the city, or she was patching him up after a night on patrol; whether he was reading one of her favorite books so they could talk about it, or she was laughing at his jokes….they were Peter and MJ. He loved her, she loved him, and that’s how it was meant to be.

“Peter?” Michelle was waving a hand in front of his face. “You still with us?”

“Wha-yeah, yeah, sorry, I just zoned out for a second.” he shook his head slightly, trying to snap back to reality.

“The bell rang,” Ned said, getting up from the table and slinging his backpack over his shoulder. “Time for Chemistry.”

MJ was still smiling at Peter in that soft way that was reserved especially for him. She got up, grabbing her trash and walking towards the trash can by the door. Peter was still a little lost in thought, just watching her. She dumped her garbage and turned around to look at him and Ned, still at the table.

“Are you coming, or what?” she called, a smile on her face. 

“Y-yeah!” Peter called back, scooting his chair back and getting up to join her, Ned trailing behind him and muttering something about “third wheel” and “so awkward” and “I really need to get some.”

“Ready?” she grinned at Peter as he grabbed her hand, locking their hands together.

“As long as you’re with me, I’m ready for anything,” he kissed her again, slow and sweet.

“That was so corny,” MJ grumbled when they broke apart, but the corners of her mouth were twitching again and Peter knew she wanted to laugh again. He leaned in to kiss her again (what? He couldn’t help himself around her, okay?) when Ned piped up.

“We’re gonna be late to Chemistry if you two don’t stop re-enacting  _ The Notebook _ !” he huffed. “Now, let’s go! You’ll have plenty of time to make out and talk about how ‘i _ n loooove _ ’ you are after school, okay?”

They all started laughing at that, walking down the hallway to their class. Peter might not know what the world was gonna throw at him each day, but with these two by his side? He could face anything.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and that's the end! thank you so much to everyone who read/commented/left kudos on this story; it really meant the world to me! hopefully, I'll be writing some more fics, so if you liked this one, stick around for more :) again, thank you so much and I hoped you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it!


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